Bloodline
by CoffeeAddict92
Summary: There's a new player in town. What's her secret? And how is she related to Callen? Will he finally receive all the answers after 44 years? My first story. R&R! NOW COMPLETE!
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: This is my first fanfic. Finally took the leap. please read and review. this story is based in 2014. I have no beta, so all mistakes are solely mine. **

**Own nothing. everything you recognize belongs to CBS, Shane Brennan. And I took the names of Sigma and Viatus Corp. from the author James Rollins. Amazing books.**

Chapter 1

The weather was perfect was for a morning surf. G. Callen stared out across the ocean, eyes crinkling as the sun hit him in the face. The breeze was mild, with a hint of a fresh ocean.

"I knew you wouldn't disappoint me," chimed a voice.

Callen turned around to see Marty Deeks plant his surfboard in the sand like planting a flag and grinning cheekily at him.

"I only came because I lost the bet," he replied. Deeks rolled his eyes. "Yes of course Callen. I bet Sam would love to see that." Callen shook his head and turned back to face the ocean.

"So you want to try out the rookie ones or the big-boy ones?"

Callen gave him a look.

"O-kay. Big-boy it is. Follow me," Callen picked up his surfboard from the sand and followed the younger blond man towards the sea.

An hour later, they came out and flopped on the sand like beached seals.

"You've been holding out on me," Deeks complained. "You told me you never surfed."

"You assumed that. All I said I didn't do it quite often," Callen replied grinning. Deeks scowled good naturedly, his hair making him look like his dog, Monty.

The beach was filling up as the sun rose higher.

"Let's get back. I don't want to face Hetty's wrath for being late again," Deeks said, getting up and slinging the surfboard over his shoulder.

"And not to mention Kensi's, for forgetting her daily dose of caffeine," added Callen, following suit.

"That happened only twice," the other man defended. "But you're right. I'd take an armed gang over Kensi's dagger eyed look any day."

* * *

The NCIS Office of Special Projects was bustling with its usual number of agents as the two men walked in. Kensi was at her desk, looking haggard. Sam was nowhere to be found. Deeks placed the cup on her desk, receiving a smile in return.

"Where's Sam?" Callen asked as he dumped his bag under the table and picked up his coffee mug.

"Hitting the bag upstairs. God, what is with paperwork?" she added, giving the file under her nose a venomous glare.

"Easy, Fern. That poor thing doesn't deserve such a scorch," Deeks said, earning him one itself.

Callen shook his head and grinned. As he waited for his laptop to boot, he crossed over to the coffee machine in the corner. Pouring himself a steaming cup, he leaned against the counter, watching the Ops centre.  
Hetty sat at her desk, nursing a cup of tea. She silently raised her cup in acknowledgement. Peter was at the wardrobe station, sewing a pair of trousers that someone had ripped. The smell and sounds never bored him. The NCIS was the closest thing he had to a family.

"Penny for your thoughts," said a quiet voice. Nate Getz, their psychologist stood at the counter, pouring himself some coffee.

"Just thinking," he replied smiling. "Its good to have you back, Nate."

"It's good to be back," he replied sincerely. The two men shared another smile before heading back towards their desk.

Callen settled at his desk and took a swig of the java. Setting his cup aside he logged onto his secure email account. A new email caught his eye. The sender's ID wasn't familiar. It didn't have the domain of any known organization. Hesitating for a second, he double clicked it.

With no subject, there was only a brief sentence. Along with it were four JPEG attachments. Curious he read the message, a bucket of ice settling in the pit of his stomach. He scrubbed his face, the stubble catching his fingertips. He moved the pointer to the link to the attachments, pausing again. Did he want to?  
After a moment, he clicked it. He suddenly felt like he'd taken a leap off a cliff and he realized that he didn't know where it ended. He felt goose bumps even in the warm bullpen, the hair on the back of his neck rose in silent adrenaline. He went through the photographs, heart pounding in beat to the pounding of blood in his ears.

Suddenly he snapped the shut the lid, startling everyone in the vicinity.

"G?" He snapped up to find Sam looking at him concerned. Kensi and Deeks had stopped mid-bickering.

"Callen, what is it?" Kensi asked, as Deeks frowned not understanding what had happened.

"I-its nothing." He pushed back his chair hurried away. Sam started to go after him, but a voice interrupted him.

"Mr. Callen needs some time alone, Mr. Hanna. He'll talk when he's ready to," Henrietta 'Hetty' Lange said, in her sage voice.

Sam whirled on his four-feet-ten boss. She stared back at him through her owlish glasses, her face one of utter sadness.

"Hetty?"

"Patience, Mr. Hanna," she said, holding up one hand. "Now, I suggest you get back to your paperwork. They aren't gonna finish by themselves." She was gone before any of them could ask anything else.

"The hell I'm letting this go," Sam muttered, moving to sit at Callen desk. The two younger operatives crowded in immediately. None of them noticed that Hetty had paused. She looked at the three of her agents, contemplating for a moment before walking away. No force in the world could unglue the team. Certainly not Hetty Lange herself.

"He was staring at his laptop before he suddenly snapped," Deeks said, leaning over Kensi as Sam opened the laptop again. The password protection had automatically reset. Sam didn't pause as he typed in.

"How did you-?"

"There's very little that I don't know of the man named G. Callen," Sam muttered as he retraced Callen's last webpage. They all leaned in closer as the email screen popped up. They read the message and when they saw the photographs, Deeks leaned back, whistling audibly. Kensi looked at Sam who sat frowning.

"Whoever sent this is serious."

"And dangerous," Sam concluded. "Nobody I've known wants to give up information without a catch. And this person is willing to meet him on his terms?"

"It's hinky. Eric!" Kensi had her phone on the desk connect to the Ops room. "Get your surfer butt down here."

Even their techie had realized the urgency. Eric Beale raced down the stairs, in less than ten seconds, his flip flops slapping the ground maniacally.

"Trace the sender's IP address. I wanna know the location, time and electronic signature. You have fifteen minutes." Eric left, saying "I'll have them in ten," as he raced upstairs. Nell Jones nodded as he relayed Sam's request and the two of them disappeared through the doors.

"I'm gonna go look for G. You two let me know if anything turns up."

"Will do," Kensi and Deeks replied together.

She glanced at the open page.

'I know what G stands for. We'll meet on your terms.' The message stared back her like a loud neon sign. The phone number under it was a Los Angeles one. Possibly a burner phone.

"I don't know how many times Callen can take ramming into the wall," she muttered, feeling sorry for their team leader.

**Please review! all constructive criticisms accepted; be kind. Thank you.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Read A/N from first chapter. Don't own anything.**

Chapter 2

The doorbell rang several times, setting off the dog that lay snoozing in the parlour.

"Yeah. I'm coming," Kate Blackwood called out as she crossed the living room and went to get the door. "Down boy," she added to the Siberian husky as he barked. Glancing through the peephole, she opened the door, letting her partner in.

Sean Winchester, an ex-Secret Service agent, took off his baseball cap and combed the mass of brown hair back into place. At forty-two he stood at a strapping six-four, and six years senior to his partner. His emerald green eyes took in the small suitcase standing near the couch and asked, "You're taking a vacation?"

"You make it sound like I'm about to dive off into the Potomac in my Audi."

"I'm serious."

"Yes. I have two months worth of vacation and now is any a good time," she said, crossing him and heading towards the fridge. "JD?" she called.

"Thanks," he said as she handed him a beer and pushed the suitcase off the way.

"So where are you going?" he said, scratching Rex behind his ears. The nearly 70 pound dog rolled onto its back, tongue lolling out.

"Someplace sunny," she replied, walking back towards the study/library.

"Middle East?" he asked, following her. She half turned glaring at him.

"No."

"Then where?"

She stopped, tucking a small cardboard box into the crook of her arm. "You're not gonna let this go, are you?" she asked, sighing.

"No."

"I'm leaving for L.A. this evening."

He stopped in mid-swig. He looked closely at her, eyes narrowing.

"And this sudden desire to visit Los Angeles is because?" he prompted.

"You're the one who's always nagging me for not taking a vacation," she said, huffing out a laugh. He didn't buy it. He put down the bottle and said, "Come on, Katie-bug, what's going on?"

She bit her lip, looking far from the ruthless and cold blooded operative that people knew her to be. Her dark gray eyes flicked between his knees and chest before she let out a long exhale and said, "Dad had another mild attack this morning. They had to take him to the hospital."

Sean closed in the distance and wrapped his arms around her. Cradling her head against his chest, he dropped a quick kiss to her hair. Sean Winchester was the only living soul who knew all the pieces of the puzzle of her personal mission.

"I'm sorry. Is he okay? Who's with him?" She patted his side.

Pulling back she said, "Ellen's there. She said- he was mumbling about Gray. What if he never- I don't want him to go out without knowing his son is alive, Sean. That man may have done some things that even he can't forgive himself for, but he at least doesn't deserves this."

"How are you gonna contact him?"

"I already did. He's in L.A. I sent him an email and phone number. It's gonna take even the smartest computer days to decrypt the location. By that time I'll be L.A. He's not going to trust me. So the only option I'll have to lay all my cards out on the table."

Sean scratched his stubble making a rasping noise.

"He's NCIS. He'll have the technology to identify you within a moment."

"Only what's in the outer page. I doubt even NCIS can get the password to my files. And besides who says I'm going as Kate Blackwood? At least not till I have to."

Sean grinned at that. Even Rex gave a bark of approval. He glanced at the husky, a sudden idea taking shape.

"Looks like its vacation time for Rex and me as well." Kate shook her head.

"I'm not letting you go alone. Might as well cash in my holidays."

* * *

"You need to change you're sulking places," Sam said, as he settled on the sand. "Since when do you prefer beaches than parks?"

Callen shot a glance at his partner. He sat with his knees drawn up, arms wrapped around them. "I'm not sulking."

"Of course not. You're staring out at the ocean like you're about to die any second," Sam shrugged. His attempt at humor was returned with an eye roll.

"Eric's running a trace. Whoever this is, we'll find him."

Callen remained silent. He dropped his knees back on the ground and said, "This guy, whoever he is, has genuine proof. No paper proving it, no shoddy grainy pictures. What if-"

"What if what you're looking for isn't what you want to know," Sam finished for him. Callen nodded slowly.

"Only one way to find out," Sam said.

**Review! Little encouragement goes a long way. Enjoy!**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Still looking... Nope! Don't own anything. In my country they're halfway through season 2.**

Chapter 3

"L.A.," Sean said, breathing in the salty ocean air. Rex trotted beside him, Sean holding his leash. Kate had traveled under an old alias, Ashley James. She looked nothing like she did ten hours ago. Her dark brown hair was hidden under a strawberry blond curly wig, gray-bronze eyes now a pale blue; cheekbones a little less prominent. All in all she matched her driver's ID of Ashley James; resident of Jacksonville FL. Sean didn't spare her a glance as she walked past them in a grey t-shirt and black jeans and spiky leather boots, swinging a multi-colored side bag. Even Rex had been trained to stay away from her aliases.

He on the other hand had used his old Secret Service ID. His new one wasn't on any known databases. He was as much traceable as his partner wasn't. They both knew any flight within the last six hours would be tagged. Might as well give them a bowl of dog biscuits rather than the bone.

* * *

The morning was cloudy as Ashley James jogged along the beach trail, feet slapping on the pavement in rhythm with her song on the I-pod. Her ponytail swished from side to side.

She stopped near the MalibuSurferBeach, pretending to catch her breath. Her eyes scanned grid by grid. She smiled fleetingly as she spotted Sean, in running shorts and tee, racing along with an excited Rex in tow. He managed to turn almost every female head on the stretch.

She stopped as her thoughts deviated in a different direction. She'd known him for six years, back when he'd been a liaison with DARPA's Special Operations team, Sigma. A man with degrees in criminal psychology and criminal justice, it hadn't taken their Director very long to recruit him. Five years ago, when he had lost his wife and six year old daughter in a home invasion, he'd permanently resigned from the USSS, becoming a full member of Sigma.  
They'd become close, something she never would've predicted. He was a great guy, biggest heart she'd ever seen and if she hadn't known that he'd been a former Secret Service Agent, she would've never guessed. He brought smile and laughter wherever he went. He knew how to make her laugh. She sometimes joked that he'd made mushy and destroyed the reputation of being the impossible-to-catch operative that Kate Blackwood was famous for.

As she watched him stop, she started running again, pushing her thoughts away. She knew in his heart, he wasn't ready. Five years weren't enough to make someone forget their family. Things like that took time to heal. And she wasn't exactly the poster girl for healthy relationship. With one engagement that ended in an exploding IED, and a few dead ends, she was anything but that.

Suddenly she stopped again. Huffing out a laugh she realized she was going crazy. Since when did she ever believe she could live the apple pie life? The only way she could retire permanently was with lead in her.

* * *

"I can't believe it!" Eric's wail reached them downstairs at the bullpen. Before the four agents could comprehend what had happened, the techie came running down, feet slapping like gunshots. Nell followed him, holding her tablet PC.

"What happened?" Callen asked sitting up.

"I can't decrypt it. It's like trying to catch grasshopper. The moment I managed to triangulate a location, it jumps to another. Neither can I pull out the IP address. It's like I'm trying to catch a ghost. The only thing I managed to find that it was sent somewhere from the east coast." Eric was on the verge of breakdown. It had never taken him more than 24 hours to crack the toughest of codes. Glasses askew, he stared helplessly at the group.

"That could be anywhere," Deeks said.

"Then we have to go blind."

They all jumped at Hetty's voice. The tiny woman moved like a ninja.

"Considering what happened last time, I don't think that's a very good idea," Sam said, before Callen could get any ideas and go lone wolf on them.

"Ah yes. But you're forgetting something else Mr. Hanna. We do have a tiny bit of advantage. The sender has agreed to meet Mr. Callen on his terms. Even that tiniest detail we can use it to our advantage."

Kensi turned to face the flustered techie. "Eric, can you trace where the message ends when Callen sends the reply?"

Glad to forget his recent failure, he said, "I can try. But it's a very short window."

"Hey Nell, can you pull up all the flights arriving from east coast in the last twenty four hours?" Nell looked doubtful. "That's a lot of ground to cover. It could be anyone. But I'll try."

Eric had settled in his chair.

"Ready when you are, Callen," he said, eyes narrowed at his desktop screen like he was about to launch a bomb.

Callen pulled out his cell phone, glanced at his team and typed in.

"Ready, Eric?"

"Yep." He hit the send button just as the blond techie activated the tracer. They all stared at the blinking red dot that was Callen's position.

The other dot never appeared.

* * *

The Santa Monica Pier had thousands of tourists each year. The Ferris wheel dominated the scene. Amid hundreds of Los Angeles tourists and locals, nobody gave the tall blonde a second glance. Dressed in a pair of blue cotton shorts and a thin shirt over a bikini top, Ashley James stood at the pier, a tourist camera in one hand, large shades hooked at the collar of her shirt and a map of L.A. in the other.

"Found one. One o'clock, maroon muscle shirt Afro-American. That's Agent Hanna." Sean's voice suddenly buzzed in Ashley's earpiece. He was somewhere down the beach. Ashley turned around in a tight circle as if she was taking in the view. Sure enough, Sam Hanna was leaning against the railings, eyes on the crowd.

Ashley started walking, eyes downward, turning the map this way and that. She stopped within hearing range of the agent, turned towards the mainland and pretended to look for something. Eyes squinting she alternated between looking at the colorful rows of shops and her map. Her ears were glued on Sam.

"No sign of him. What about you and Deeks?" Apparently the answer was negative, for Sam cursed under his breath. "Where the hell are you?"

* * *

"I have a really bad feeling about this," Deeks muttered. He was posing as a surfer near the water.

_"You mean other than the Twinkies you had,"_ Kensi said.

"You really aren't gonna let that go, are you?" he said, smiling at his partner who was sitting on the beach.

Kensi was about to fling back something sarcastic when she stopped.

_"Deeks. Your twelve o'clock. Blonde woman. White shirt."_

"Wow. Didn't expect that. Looks like its show time."

* * *

Callen looked at the sea, toes digging into the sand.

_"4 o'clock,"_ came Kensi voice over the earpiece.

"Copy that," he replied back. He kept his gaze forward. The white shirt was visible in his peripheral vision.

The woman dropped to the sand beside him and tucked an errant curl behind one ear.

"I'm glad you could meet me," Ashley James said, a smile on her face.

**Let me know if I should continue. Reviews are greatly appreciated! Let me know what you think! Have a great day!  
Only four days before I leave. All of my favorite shows premiere the week after next. It's SO maddening...**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Own nothing. Story's nearly finished, will be updating soon again. All the time difference is sort of confusing. I'm practically on the other side of the world. **  
**Enough rambling... this one's a bit longer.**

Chapter 4

Sean sat back leaning on his elbows. Two hundred yards away he could see Kate settling in beside Callen. He had left the earmic on. He had eyes on both the female agent named Blye and the LAPD liaison, Marty Deeks.

He kept an eye on the surroundings. Nothing overly suspicious besides the occasional shrieking tourists. Rex was sprawled on his side, keeping an eye on Kate too. He couldn't quite dismiss the scratch on his neck. Something was not right and he had a feeling it had nothing to do with the trio of agents keeping an eye over Callen.

His phone vibrated in his pocket and fishing it out, he sighed.

_"What is your phone doing in Los Angeles, Agent Winchester?"_ Director Crowe's voice came clear over the line. Sean winced inwardly.

"Taking a holiday, sir," he replied.

_"Uh-huh. I'm assuming Agent Blackwood is with you."_

"Yes sir."

_"Ah well. Can't hurt to get some sunshine. But that's not why I called. Petrov Karlov escaped last night."_

Sean sat up. "How?"

_"His custody bodyguards were shot and killed at an undisclosed airstrip in Utah. Karlov escaped. Last known tracker puts him in the west coast. If I were you, I'd watch out. We all know his personal vendetta against-"_

"Kate," Sean whispered, eyes falling back on the blonde. "Alright, sir. Thanks for the heads up." He shut off the phone and sat up, crossing his legs. Rex shook himself, spraying sand everywhere.

"This just keeps getting better," he muttered, the uneasy feeling creeping back again.

* * *

"What do want to know?" Kate asked.

"Who are you?"

"Ashley James." He hadn't expected it to be her real name.

"How do know me at all? Did someone hire you?"

He watched as Ashley's mask slipped a little and a fleeting wisp of pain and sadness passed her eyes. But she reverted back to herself and replied, "No one hired me, Callen. Or rather I should call you by your first name." He found himself holding onto his breath. "Grayson. Grayson Edward Callen; you were named after your father and your paternal grandfather."

Callen's careful mask of disinterest broke away enough for her to see the raging sea of emotions behind those blue eyes. Finally he tore his gaze away from the sinking sun.

"How do you know this?" he asked, his voice shaking infinitesimally.

"Your father was the one who kept watch over you all these years."

"My father?"

She nodded. "Captain Shane-"

The muffled spitfire of distant gunfire drowned the noise of the crowd.

"GET DOWN!"

Kate pushed Callen down, hand flying to her ear.

"King, come in!" she yelled, using Sean's call sign.

_"Queen, we have a problem."_

* * *

Deeks dropped down due to sheer instinct as he saw Ashley James tackle Callen to the ground.

_"Deeks! Come in,"_ it was Kensi screaming in his ear. _"Is Callen okay?"_

As he looked at the two people still on the sand, Callen pulled out his gun. So did the other woman. They nodded and stood up, covering each other as they ran towards the street.

"He's okay. I'm on him."

* * *

Callen ran as fast as his feet could take him. Beside him, Ashley James sprinted like a cheetah. Whoever had shot at them hadn't been her doing. Which begged the question who she really was.

She was talking on her comm.

She stopped as they reached the edge of the beach.

"Where's your people? Agent Hanna?" she asked, looking around. He wasn't surprised. Ashley James had done her homework.

A loud throttle caught his attention. He whipped around just in time to see two masked men jump out of a black sedan, holding Heckler and Koch MP5s. James had seen them too. With inhuman speed she leveled her Beretta and shot one, Callen took out the other.  
A third exited from the passenger seat. He too went down in a volley of closely packed bullets.

"You okay, G?" Sam called, pushing the fallen weapon away.

Callen glanced at Ashley before replying, "Yeah. I'm okay."

* * *

For the first time anyone could remember, the newcomer was taken straight to the OSP HQ.

And Ashley James wasn't alone. Riding shotgun in her rental was Sean Winchester and Rex.

Hetty was waiting for them when the three cars slid into the alley.

"Nice digs," Sean commented eyes scoping out the place out of sheer habit.

"Wait till your inside," Deeks said, sounding very much like a proud new homeowner.

Hetty however, smiled, and shook Ashley's hand in both of hers.

"My dear, it's been a long time."

Ashley smiled, patting their hands with a free one.

"It has, Hetty. Ghosts have crept out of graves."

At that, Hetty laughed. They all followed her inside to the bullpen where Eric, Nell and Nate were standing.

"Am I the only one who feels like I missed an entire season of the show?" Deeks muttered.

"Nope," replied everyone, including Sean. Rex barked and lifted himself on his rear legs and gave Hetty a rather wet welcome.

"Ooh, Rex. It's good to see you, my boy," Hetty said rubbing the massive dog.

Then she turned to her agents and said, "Everyone, I'd like you to meet Special Agent Katherine Blackwood, otherwise quite famously known as-"

"-'The Ghost'," Nell finished, eyes wide. Even Nate straightened up.

Kate laughed. "Before I continue, is there a restroom I can use? I think it's quite insulting if you know me and not how I look. It's evident you value undercover security as much as I do."

Kensi spoke up. "Sure, this way."

As the two women walked away, Hetty turned to Sean.

"I received an urgent call from Director Vance telling me an escaped bio-terrorist. And then from none other than the Secretary of Defense himself stating two of their agents were here in L.A."

"Petrov Karlov is much more than just a terrorist. He's a mad man who's hell bent on wiping the population with a virus. But it's a classified file," Sean said, glancing at the others.

"Yes I know. I also spoke with your Director, Painter Crowe. And according to him, since both his top agents are here and Petrov Karlov's men were found here, this will be a joint operation between Sigma and NCIS. Eric, lead everyone up at the Ops room."

They all followed the techie upstairs.

Nell looked ready to burst. Before she could herself, she sidled up to Sean and said, "The Ghost, I mean Agent Blackwood is known to work alone. How is it like working with her?"

"At first it was like ramming into the Great Wall of China. But it takes time."

"Sounds like someone I know," Sam commented, flicking his eyes towards Callen, who shook his head, amused.

Eric was on the phone. He put it down, and faced the rest of them.

"Surveillance and traffic cams pulled this up. Five minutes before Callen, Sam and Agent Blackwood shot the men. The gunfire wasn't aimed in drawing you out," he said, replaying the few angles of the scene. "The man that was killed- a Marine named Tyson Jacobs. He's was-"

"One of his custodial detail," Sean said, voice grim.

"You knew him?"

"He was my contact when we first began hunting for Karlov," said a voice, as the doors to the Ops room slid open.

The woman that walked in bore no resemblance to the one that had left with Kensi. Dark copper hair tumbling down to her waist in loose curls; Kate Blackwood was ivory skinned with high cheekbones and stormy grey eyes flecked with gold.

"Jacobs was on tail. He survived the shootout in Utah where Karlov's men sprung him, traveled to L.A. under the alias Ross Brandon."

Nell typed furiously and sure enough, Ross Brandon popped up on the TSA list of incoming flights from Dallas.

"So gentlemen, and ladies, this is now officially a joint operation," Hetty said, looking at all of them.

**Review! They make my day. I'd love to know what do you think. Makes me write faster. **  
**P.S. I think my room has become the HQ for fluffy little plot bunnies...**


	5. Chapter 5

**Thank you for all those who reviewed and put it on favorite/alerts. Opening my mailbox just made me smile!**

**A/N: Game is looking...game sees nothing!**

****Chapter 5

"Grayson Edward Callen," Sam said, saying each word slowly. "It kinda suits you, you know."

"Suits me?" Callen asked.

"Yeah. You look like a Grayson. Gray Callen. Ha!"

"What?"

"Gray. It's pretty much your job description." At that Callen had to grin. He glanced at Kate Blackwood who was busy talking to Hetty. She had tied her hair in a braid, and donned a black jacket over a grey vest.

"You okay, G?" Sam asked, before he added, "Gray?"

Callen turned his gaze away from the two women. "Yeah. I'm good."

Sean walked over to them, shutting the phone.

"That was out Director. He's sending over some stuff and momentarily de-classifying all of Karlov's files. You want to solve Jacobs' murder and we need Karlov, DOA."

"Who's a good boy, huh? That's right. That's a good boy?" They all turned around to see Deeks rubbing Rex's head and making cooing noises. And Rex was stoically sitting and trying to ignore him.

"Deeks, if I were you, don't mention the B word," Sean warned.

Deeks looked up. "What B word?"

"The thing that makes up a skeleton. Trust me. You do not want a 70 plus pound husky stalking you for weeks. And I'm deadly serious. I learned the hard way."

Deeks looked at Rex who looked at him wolfishly. Then stretched his jaws and yawned, showing off massive set of canines. Sam laughed.

"Point taken."

Eric's whistle stopped any further conversation.

"Got something," he called down.

They all hurried upstairs, Kate joining them a minute later with Hetty in tow.

"Kaleidoscope spat out this. Taken at an intersection in Venice twenty minutes ago," Nell said, playing the footage.

Two black Escalades with tinted windows and no license plates pulled in the corner. Several men exited, their bulging jackets a dead giveaway for concealed weapons. Two of them kept guard, while the rest went in.

"Do you have any cam from a different angle?" Callen asked.

"Right up," Eric said, tapping into a storefront camera.

"Chili Peppers," Deeks said, raising an eyebrow. "Something tells me they aren't here for the local cuisine."

"No, they are not," Kate said slowly. She looked at the footage closely, eyebrows furrowed. Then she hung back. "Look at the side of the Escalade. See anything? Eric, zoom in on the second SUV, rear tires."

The bumper sticker flashed out like a neon sign.

"Viatus Corp.," Sean breathed. "You've got to be kidding me."

Nell pulled up the website of Viatus Corporation on the screen.

"Viatus Corp. headed by a Ronald Freidman. Formerly a Norwegian citizen, moved to the U.S fourteen years ago to expand his chain of business including Viatus. Interpol has been interested for a longtime but without any proof hasn't been able to serve any reason for shutting it down."

"And here's why," Sean said. "Nell, DARPA file BorneoOmega6586Gandalf. No spaces. Key code 00987JackDanielsRetro67. What?" he said, noticing Kate's amused grin. "You told me I could choose any key code."

"I'm so not having that conversation right now," she said, holding up her hands.

"Okay. File's up," Eric said, as the big screen started filling with pages after pages of information. "Whoa! Guess who's in the States?"

"Ronald Freidman," Sam said, looking at the TSA photo.

"How deep was this investigation?" Callen asked as he skimmed through the files.

"Three months. In the end, Freidman sold Karlov out. The guy wasn't evil. Once he realized what Karlov had been doing with his genetically modified crops back in Africa, he spilled like a slit in a rice bag. We got enough to send him to prison for the rest of his life. And also the hospital," Sean glanced at Kate.

"So it's personal?" Sam asked, glancing at the older brunette.

"Yes and no," she replied shortly, her tone clear that the topic wasn't up for discussion.

"Alright, Mr. Beale, Nell, keep watching both Freidman and Karlov, for the time being. Mr. Hanna, work with Agent Winchester on this one," Hetty said.

"Kate and I'll go check out the restaurant. Kensi, Deeks talk to Jacobs' wife. Eric, send the address," Callen said, nodding at the techie.

"I'll let you know when Sigma's back up arrives at LAX," Hetty said.

* * *

"Can I say something and not get slugged?" Deeks asked as they were staking out Jacobs' place. The neighbor said she hadn't got back from the school she teaches.

"Depends," replied Kensi, frowning a little at her partner's serious voice.

"Promise?"

"Deeks…" she said warningly.

"Alright. Maybe it's just the cop in me, I don't know. But I think Callen and this infamous Kate Blackwood are related."

He looked at Kensi, serious and unblinkingly. She on the other hand, gaped.

"Where did that come from?" she finally stuttered.

"One, they're both lone wolf operatives. Two, there are subtle similarities between them-"

"-Like what?" Kensi interrupted.

"It's hard to explain. And third, I pulled up Kate Blackwood's file. Guess what? Her foster father adopted her from an orphanage when she was two years old. And guess what his name is?" Kensi raised her eyebrows in silent question, still highly finding Deeks' theory incredulous. "A Captain Shane G. Schofield, a legend in the Army. Isn't that what Kate had started to say before she got interrupted?"

Kensi sat back, not yet dismissing all that Deeks had said.

"Are you su-?"

"No. But if I am," Deeks said, shrugging. Kensi bit her lip, knowing full well how this would affect their lead agent, who had found and lost leads to his past like grains of sand in one's fist.

Thankfully, a grey Volvo slid into the driveway just then, ending the uncomfortable topic. A woman climbed out, adjusting two grocery bags and trying to shut the door. Kensi and Deeks exited her car and walked the short distance up to her.

"Let me help you that," Deeks said, ever the gentleman. Vera Jacobs looked relieved.

"Mrs. Jacobs, I'm Agent Blye, NCIS and this is Det. Deeks, LAPD. We're investigating your husband's murder. Mind if we ask some questions?"

She nodded and for the first time Kensi noted the slightly red rimmed eyes. They followed her up the driveway and waited till she unlocked the front door. Deeks went in while Kensi took a moment to scope the street up and down before moving in and shutting the door behind her.

Once they had settled in the living room, Kensi asked, "Mrs. Jacobs, can you tell us if your husband spoke about anything regarding to his profession in the past few days? Anything, however it small may seem maybe be able to help us."

Vera Jacobs took a moment to glance thoughtfully at the wall opposite before saying, "Tyson was in D.C for the past few days. He left on Saturday and all he said that it was important."

"Did he say where in D.C.? He was posted here in L.A, wasn't he?"

"Yes. I don't know where. Although, I heard him say something like Queen? I'm not sure. I didn't ask."

"Queen? Are you sure?"

"I-I think so," Vera said, looking a little uncertain. "He woke up in the middle of the night and was talking on the phone. That's when I heard him say. He sounded tense."

"I'm on it," Deeks said, pulling out his phone and moving into the kitchen to make the call to Eric.

Kensi waited till Deeks had moved away before she asked, "Is there anything else you can think about?"

Vera shook her head. Kensi nodded and patted the widow's knee.

Deeks walked back in. Kensi stood up.

"Thank you for your time, Mrs. Jacobs." She pulled out her card and gave it to the other woman. "If you can think of something else, let me know." Vera nodded, taking the card.

As they walked back to their cars, Deeks said, "Hey, Kens, about we were talking about earlier- let's keep it to ourselves?"

"No problem. For all we know it could be a coincidence," she replied, sliding into the driver's seat and buckling up. "And by the way, please tell me you didn't use the NCIS server to access Blackwood's file."

"No! As if! I used the LAPD's. Boy, she had some serious classification level. I don't think even Callen has that much security clearance."

"Figures," was all his partner said, peeling away from the curb.

**Review. Let me know if you still like the story. Callen's questions will be answered in the next chapter!  
Have a good day!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Hetty met Clara in 1966, considreing she was born in 1948, wouldn't she be 18? Huh. A bit too young to be a handler. Never mind, I kept to that time line. Oh I changed some stuff back in Ch #3. Sean lost his family 5, not 3 years ago. I realized I had screwed up _that_ timeline as I was editing the later chapters. Sorry about hat.**

**Enough rambling...**

**Thanks for the reviews! Hope the story's worth reading. It's the first time I've ever attempted writing something that lasted more than sixty seconds!**

**A/N: Nope. Don't own it!**

Chapter 6

"You think me and Sean arriving here, Jacobs getting killed are connected?" Kate asked from the passenger seat of his Mercedes. He glanced at her. Grey-bronze eyes stared back unflinchingly.

"No."

"But you had considered it?"

He nodded slowly. That seemed to satisfy her.

"So who was my father?" he asked, changing subjects.

"Your father is still alive," she replied, her tone slightly admonishing. "He lives in D.C. Captain Shane G. Schofield, former Army Ranger. After about a dozen tours he went the politics' way- he's a four star war vet."

Callen's brow furrowed slightly. "I've heard of him." She didn't comment on that. Instead she said, "He's retired now. Well as retired he can be without still getting summoned to the Pentagon every few weeks for consultation. Not that he actually minds," she added, smiling.

"So how do you know him?" he asked.

Kate took a moment to answer that. "Let me tell you from the beginning. How much has Hetty told you about your mother?"

"How did-?"

"She wouldn't and I wouldn't be doing our jobs if I didn't know that, Gray."

He let out a breath. "Not much."

She nodded, eyes in a thousand-yard stare as she pieced together her story.

"Alright. Your father was born in Charleston, West Virginia in 1941. He joined the Army at eighteen, Rangers at twenty one, quickly rising through the ranks. By twenty-three he was a well known undercover operative. He met your mother Clara Sanchez, a young CIA operative in 1965 in a joint task operation in Somalia. A year the CIA assigned Henrietta Lange to be her handler. But she disappeared. In 1972, she turned up in Romania, with two children; your sister Amelia and you. As you already know, the Comescus got to her before Hetty could. Your father was in Eritrea at that time, working deep undercover with a Mossad agent named Safia Almaaz. It was Safia who got to you and your sister before the Comescus could finish off the job. She smuggled you into the States and in an orphanage in Baltimore. However, by the time your father got back, you and your sister had disappeared. That had been Hetty's work. She put you and sister in different foster homes so that nobody could trace you."

Kate paused; her voice had grown heavy, eyes darker as she looked at the road ahead of her.

"Someone kept tabs on me," Callen said, keeping his eyes fixed on a Tootsie Roll wrapper on the dashboard; the bright pink contrasting vividly with the state of mind.

She nodded. "Safia was the one who tracked down your sister who was at that time living in a foster care system in South Carolina in 1974. Amy was about seven. Her plan was to get both of you and take you back to your father who was then posted in Boston. But before she could, her cover was compromised. Officially she couldn't be on American soil. The CIA was on her tail and so she was forced to run. But she located your foster home here in Los Angeles. Informing your father, she left the States. But not before something else happening. Safia was pregnant when she left. Your father didn't know. He just assumed she'd been killed on a mission. In 1978, she gave birth to a baby girl, Annabelle Almaaz. But her fear of discovering the child forced her to leave her in an orphanage. Your father acted upon Safia's tip, locating both you and your sister. By then he'd figured out your mother's murder had nothing to do with his enemies but your family feud with the Romani Comescus. So he hired a private investigator named Michael Drummond. He was the one who kept tabs on you. Mike also stumbled upon Safia's trail while in Abu Dhabi. You see, Safia Almaaz was not only a Mossad agent; she was also the daughter of the wealthiest sheikh in the Arab Emirates. Safia was the only daughter of Abbas Al Zahir Almaaz, and an Irish woman, Annabelle McCaffrey, a member of the Irish commando unit, SFA. Mike tracked down Safia's last known route and found out she had passed away two months before he could get there. He found Annabelle in an orphanage in a sea cost town Eritrea, and your father himself went and brought her home. Annabelle was two years old then. But for some reason, he never mentioned to the child that he was her father."

Kate stopped, heart clenching. Her memories weren't fuzzy. She remembered the day all too well. She had been seventeen. Top of her class and could speak fluently in eight languages. And with a full ride to Georgetown. Her father had had name changed to Katherine Annabelle Blackwood at the time of adoption. Even though she had never called him 'Dad', she was his little girl. He'd taught her to kick ass and take names; taught her how to fight, took her to baseball and probably the names of every type of guns and weapons. A typical Army brat, having moved around almost all her life. She'd been tomboy with short copper hair with purple dyed tips, and lived in jeans and t-shirt up to high school.

Until that day.

She snapped out of her dark memories and looked at her half-brother. He was staring off into space, eyebrows furrowed, eyes a cloudy blue. Then he looked at her, gaze steady and asked, "You're Annabelle, aren't you?"

She nodded once slowly. Then smiled ruefully and added eyes and voice sad, "I didn't even know I had a brother till I was seventeen. Your father, Shane, never told me that I was really his daughter either."

Callen was surprised and found himself uncharacteristically pleased about that bit of information.

"Why not?"

"I don't know. I don't think he was even planning to tell me about you either," she said, shaking her head. "If I hadn't found that stack of cardboard boxes that summer back in '93… well things would've been so different."

He was about to ask her what she meant when Eric's voice rang in the car. _"Guys, there are six men exiting through the back alley. One of them looks like Karlov."_

In a flash, they left the car, earmic on. "On it," Callen said, nodding to his…his sister. He still couldn't wrap his head around it.

"Kensi and Deeks are twenty minutes out."

"Ready?"

"Whenever you are, brother dearest," she replied, smiling too as a smile stretched across his lips.

They moved in sync, covering each other. The first guy spotted them and let loose a volley of bullets which clanged off the dumpster.

"Shoot straight," Kate muttered, and dropped him. Callen was already ahead and took position another trash can. He first pointed to his eyes, and then lifted four fingers. She nodded. He covered her as she shot her way across Callen hiding place. The other four shooters had by this time started shooting at them. Kate shot from under the Dumpster catching one in the foot dropping him momentarily.

"Go," she said, moving out of her hiding place covering Callen. He ran, hitting another. The man with half his foot missing leveled his gun but never fired. His head exploded from two bullets from Kate's gun. She took cover to reload. One more to go. And Karlov.

Callen peeked out from his hiding and fired. The last man was obviously Karlov's head bodyguard. He shielded his boss and slid his MP5 into auto mode, spewing bullets. Callen was forced to duck. Their parked Escalade was shielding them. As another Escalade screeched into the scene, both Kate and Callen came out, firing. The bodyguard pushed Karlov into the car, and aimed his gun at the idle one.

Kate was closer and Callen, realizing what the guy was about to do, yanked her away, just as MP5 burst into auto. Callen pulled Kate just as the tank blew, the force flinging both of them into the wall. They crashed back on the ground as the Escalade blew up and rained chunks of glass and metal.

Dazed Callen looked at Kate who was half buried under him, knocked out. The smell of burning metal filled the scene. He heard the sound of screeching tires, through the buzzing in his ear.

He pulled up his gun, head swimming as two figure approached him.

It was only Kensi and Deeks. They saw him draped over the woman and went forward, helping him up.

"Getting into action, Callen?" Deeks tried to joke. Kensi groaned at the pun while Callen glared so fiercely that Deeks backtracked. He sat up gingerly and leaning down tapped Kate's cheek. She blinked open and winced. Kensi helped her sit up and they surveyed the back alley.

Kate wiped the blood on her cheek with one hand and stood up on shaky legs. Callen was still on the ground. She looked down when she realized he hadn't made any attempt to stand.

"Hey, are you okay?" she asked, concerned. He grinned. "Twisted my damn ankle."

Grinning at his face, she leaned down and put his arm around her shoulder and slipped an arm around his waist. He stood on his left foot.

"It must be genetic," he commented as their group hobbled back to where they'd parked their cars.

"What is?"

"Always getting shot at or blown up." She laughed. Deeks and Kensi exchanged a glance. The blond detective was supporting Callen on the other side.

"Part of the deal, brother dearest," she said, tightening her hold on his hand.

"I was bloody freakin' right," was Deeks' only comment.

* * *

"I leave you for one hour and you manage to get both shot at and blown up." Sam's agitated voice boomed down as he thundered down the stairs with Sean dogging his heels.

The four of them were in the bullpen downstairs, after spending almost an hour at the crime scene. The ambulance had arrived first. Callen's right foot was encased in a tight Ace bandage. It was only a mild sprain, the paramedic had assured. The cut on Kate's cheek had been stitched up.

Callen was propped up on the sofa, head lounging on the armrest, an ice pack held to the jaw. Kate sat on the other end, holding another one to her shoulder, feet propped up on a spare footstool. Kensi and Deeks were perched on the single armchair. They all looked around as Sam finally reached them. When he saw the scene, his eyes narrowed and said, "What happened to your foot?"

Callen smiled briefly before replying, "Twisted ankle."

Sean just looked at her and asked, "You okay?" She nodded. His eyes raked over the three neat sutures on her left cheek, but he didn't say anything. But Kate knew him like the back of her hand.

"Guys!" Eric's voice broke the moment. He came running down, looking both upset and excited, if it was even possible. He fired up the flat screen near in the bullpen as everyone gathered around it.

"Viatus Corp. reported it missing three days ago. And Ronald Freidman is in New York for his niece's marriage. He has been in Manhattan for the past week. No travel to the west coast." Eric looked at the agents as he finished speaking.

Kate frowned, sitting back.

"It could be a setup. Report the vans stolen so that when the time comes you won't be suspected," Kensi said, voicing their thoughts. She looked at Callen.

"Could be," he said, slowly. Then he looked at Sean and Kate. "Who knew about the transfer?"

"Not us," Sean said. "We're not exactly federal agents. We can't prosecute them. Hell, officially only a handful of people actually know we exist. So I'm guessing it would be the Army's CID."

"I'll have a word with them. But something tells me they're not going to be happy. And Director Crowe reported your team will arrive at 1900 at LAX," Hetty said, nodding at Kate.

"What about the men at the crime scene?" Sean asked, turning to Eric.

"Russians. Karlov's men." He brought up the VISA photos on the big screen.

Deeks however addressed Kate. "Jacobs was in Washington to meet a Queen." She looked surprised. "I never met him," she replied. Kensi looked surprised as she asked, "Wait, you're _Queen_?" Kate nodded. "My call sign with the Sigma," Kate explained.

"That's _so_ cool," Nell said. Everyone turned to face the red headed analyst who blushed to the tips of flaming hair. "I mean. I- sorry."

"What was Jacobs doing in D.C.? To warn you?" Sam asked. Both the Sigma agents shrugged.

"I don't see how. Even though Jacobs worked Sigma, he never actually knew the location of Sigma. We always met at an offsite office. Standard security protocol."

"So where is Sigma?" Eric and Deeks both asked together.

Kate smiled slyly.

"The Escalade that escaped, did it pop up on the kaleidoscope?" Callen asked.

"I'm still looking for it."

After Eric left, they all gathered in the bullpen.

"Something's not right," Kate said, leaning against a pillar, and closing her eyes. "It just doesn't make sense. Why steal something from your last enemy and do something stupid and hide here in L.A. Los Angeles isn't exactly a hot spot for anything."

"Unless you wanna try your luck in Hollywood," Deeks added. Kensi elbowed him.

"Kate's right. Last time we went after Karlov, he made us chase him all over north Europe. He had to because what we were looking for could be available only in those high latitude areas."

Kate looked at Sean, eyes narrowed. "But we destroyed the entire facility. There's no way he could've found something and smuggled it back here."

"Still, we need find Karlov. For the murder of a Marine and escaping custody," Sam said.

"Where would you go if you wanted to hide and yet not quite ready to leave L.A.?"

Deeks grinned.

**There ya go. Hope it was worth the read! Please review. Click the blue button...**

**Some action coming up in the later chapters...**


	7. Chapter 7

**Thank you all the wonderful reviews. Own nothing..**.

Chapter 7

The sun was low on the horizon when the three cars drove in through the fence into the private strip of LAX.

The Antonov stood near a hangar, its engines idling. The rear ramp lowered and two black Audi Q7s descended down it and came to the halt where the NCIS agents and the two Sigma agents stood.

"Missing us already, boss?" the guy who exited first called out.

Kate grinned, eyes squinting in the orange glow of the dying sun. Another woman exited from the passenger side, thigh holsters packed with SIGs. Her pale blonde hair fluttered in the wind. The first man bumped fists with Sean. "Trouble in paradise?" he grinned. Sean rolled his eyes.

"Oi! Rookie. Get your scrawny ass outta there," he added, bellowing back at the other SUV. Then turned back and shook hands with Callen, then Sam. Sean introduced them.

"Agent Callen and Hanna, NCIS, meet Daniel Parker, formerly Navy SEAL; call sign 'Bishop'. And that's Emma Stone, former Green Beret; call sign 'Pawn'."

"Chief Hanna, heard that story a lot," Bishop said, smiling. Sam smiled modestly. Bishop was a finger's breadth shy of seven feet, towering over them all. He was built like a massive bull with twinkling blue eyes and a fully shaven head. Emma, on the other hand was petite blonde with brown eyes. She smiled sweetly at Deeks, receiving a dazzling smile in return.  
The two other occupants joined them. Sean introduced them too. Dean 'Rook' Brennan looked more like a college student rather than a former FBI HRT. His ever messy mop of sandy hair fell into his eyes. His partner, Jared 'Knight' Weston however, gave Kensi a wink as they were introduced. He looked a young Harrison Ford. He was a former Marine with looks to match his skills.

"So this is the chess team?" Deeks asked.

"More like killer scientists," Knight said, clapping the detective. His iron hard slap made the detective wince.

"Yep. More ninjas in lab coats. Anyway welcome to L.A."

* * *

"Anything turned up?" Callen asked Eric as they settled in the bullpen.

"Still looking," Nell replied instead.

The OSP looked crowded than ever. Even at the late hour, there were quite a few people scurrying about. Meanwhile, Painter Crowe had called in soon after they had checked in. Sam and Callen updated the rest of them, while Kate took some time off and hit the upstairs gym. Kensi joined her and to everyone's surprise, so did Nell.

"Am I hallucinating?" Callen asked, watching the five-two figure of Nell following the two other women in the direction of the gym.

* * *

Hetty looked at the jumble of agents in the bullpen. Eric was deep in conversation with the pretty blonde Emma, talking animatedly. Like him, she too had gone to MIT.

Sean sat with Bishop, Callen, Deeks and Sam, strategizing. Callen and Deeks had followed the women, much to her amusement. Rook and Knight were busy with their weapons, and headed to the weapons room soon after that. Nate however, sat with the files of both Karlov and Kate Blackwood. Sean had joked her file was enough to cause any psychologist a heartburn.

For a tight knit team as hers, they had been pretty quick to bond with the Sigma. Maybe it was because of Kate Blackwood, her connection to Callen or it was maybe entirely something else.

The truth seldom surprised Henrietta Lange. But in all honesty, she could've never predicted Callen being related to Kate Blackwood. Although in hindsight, Hetty realized, the two of them weren't that different; way too many similarities that was bound to give their well wishers plenty of ulcers.

She swished the expensive Darjeeling tea in her dainty cup, watching over them like a grenade wielding mother owl.

* * *

"Keep your left foot behind to keep your balance. In that case, if you get counter punched, you won't end up on your ass," Kate said, as she and Kensi sparred. Nell sat on the floor, tired out. The tiny red head had been punching the bag with the viciousness of a young tigress. Surprised by her own enthusiasm, she had to take a break, completely worn out.

Finally Kensi too, backed out. She was tired but eager for a fight that was looming in her schedule.

"That was badass, I gotta admit," she said, plopping down beside Nell and untwisting the cap of the water bottle. Kate chuckled, rolling her shoulders. "Yeah, well, try going up against Bishop for three hours straight without a break," she said. "Enough to get your ass to gym and try harder."

Kate turned around to face the bag again. Kensi sat up straighter as she noticed something. At first she had mistaken it to be a tattoo, an odd looking one at that. But as Kate pulled her arm back hit the much abused punching bag, she realized it wasn't a tattoo. It was a ropy scar running from under the right collar bone to the tip of her shoulder. It was old, but still a puckered pink.

"Result of a really healthy lifestyle."

Kensi met her eyes, a little embarrassed for getting caught for gawking. But Kate's amused look told her she wasn't the first. Nell saved her by leaning up to get a better look.

"What happened? Looks painful," she said, her voice filled with child like curiosity.

"Getting shot usually is," Kate replied, glancing at the scar. In that brief moment, Kensi realized she wasn't talking about the gunshot wound at all. Feeling like she was intruding on something private, she quickly changed the subject.

"How long you and Sean have been partners?" she asked.

"Almost six years," she said. She stopped in mid-punch and whistled to herself. "Wow! Didn't realize it was that long," she added. She stopped the bag and grabbed it, huffing out a laugh.

Then she suddenly faced Nell and said, "You know, you should tell him."

Nell gaped, eyebrows disappearing under her hairline. Kensi looked surprised at the sudden statement. She looked at Nell who was blushing.

"I-um it's complicated," the red head finally stuttered, making Kate laugh.

"Yeah. Haven't we heard that one before?" she said.

"Who're you talking about?" Kensi asked, looking from Kate to Nell. Kate smiled.

"Does he know?" Kate said. Nell bit her lip and shook her. "At least I don't think so. I mean I've tried. And he's so-"

"-clueless?" Kate supplied. "Hon, he may be a brilliant undercover agent, but when it comes to women, he is, after all a guy."

Kensi's eyes widened before she looked at Nell, understanding finally dawning on her.

"Callen?" she said, looking delighted and weirded out at the same time. "Really? That's- wow!"

If Nell was blushing earlier, it was nothing compared to what she was doing now. Her face was crimson, with a very un-Nell-like goofy grin across her face.

"Aw…you should tell him," Kensi said.

"And you should tell Deeks," Nell replied back, making Kensi huff out a laugh, trying to cover the blush that crept up her cheeks.

"Tell me what?" said a voice.

Callen and Deeks walked in. Unless she was wrong, Kensi was sure Callen had heard them. For the usually cool head agent had a slightly flustered look. She narrowed his eyes at her partner who was watching the rest of them.

"What are you doing here?" she asked.

Deeks didn't seem fazed. He put on a mock show of hurt and replied, "Ouch Fern! Where's the love?"

"You really want me to answer that?" she said, lifting her fisted hands in a defensive position.

"Point taken."

"Actually, I was headed back to grab my all-nighter bag and feed Monty. You want me swing by at your place and grab yours? You have one packed, haven't you? I don't want you slugging me for pawing through your stuff. Although I'll have you know I have no problem doing that 'cuz I'm an awesome partner."

"Deeks!" Kensi yelled, red faced, trying to stop his rambling.

"Yes, Sugarbear?"

"Shut up." Callen was chuckling at their exchange. He glanced at Nell, and suddenly his smile vanished. Although Kate noticed this, she kept quiet. Yep, he was hopeless; without a doubt.

"I could use a ride," Kate said. "My stuff's still at the motel in Venice. And I saw a burger joint near the place. Might get some grease fix."

"The Big Ben's BurgerPalace?" Deeks said. "That place is legendary. Sure come on. Might as well get some grub. Looks like it's gonna be a really long night."

He never realized how true his words gonna become.

**Almost to the real part... Review. Have a good day!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Hello! A/N: Just playing in the sandbox.**

Chapter 8

Nell had accompanied them. They dropped off Deeks at his place before Nell turned her red Mini Cooper towards the VeniceBeach.

"So you really think I should tell him?"

Kate looked at her. She was tapping her fingers on the steering wheel to the song on the radio. But she was clearly nervous. Kate had realized, Nell Jones wasn't big on sharing from the look on utter surprise on Kensi's face. Perhaps the sudden arrival of a possible half-sister of the guy she was hung on had brought forth the sudden insecurity. Not that it made much sense to Kate either.

"If you like him, you should. I'm not really good with these things either," Kate said, grinning a little.

"Oh, you and Sean aren't-?"

"What? No, no no. we aren't. We're just partners."

The look that Nell flashed her told her that she clearly didn't believe her.

"Uh-huh," Nell said.

"I'm telling the truth. Sean used to be married. His wife, Julia, was actually one of my old classmates from high school. They had a little daughter named Macy."

"Used to?" Nell said, not missing the past tense.

"Both Julia and Macy were killed in a home invasion five years ago. I don't think Sean ever moved on." The last few words were soft as Kate looked away out of the window. Nell was at a loss for words. She looked away to focus on the road.

Thankfully, she pulled up in front of the motel Kate'd checked into. She got out and said, "I'll be out in a minute."

"No worries. I'll get us something to eat. And coffee too?"

"Yep. Black, two sugars," Kate replied, receiving a smile.

* * *

The wind had picked up when Kate exited the motel, carrying a carry-all and a backpack. Nell wasn't back yet. So she crossed the street and sat on the low stone wall where the beach began. The night breeze tangled her hair which she had tied back in a ponytail.

Staring at the ocean, she remembered another lifetime. Alex used to love the sea. Every chance they got, they'd travel to the most obscure of sea shores, even going to the backwaters of Norway one summer break. A smile tugged unconsciously as in her mind's eyes she saw the tousled black hair and mesmerizing pale blue eyes and her younger self with shoulder length curly hair. A decorated combat vet, Alex Cole was a Marine. Just as the thought had appeared, it vanished in the wake of crashing waves. Suddenly feeling exposed and cold, she hugged herself. Alex was gone. He wasn't coming back.

The irony was that the IED took her fiancé was the same one that reunited her with her father after almost a decade. Her father's face was the first thing she'd seen when she'd opened her eyes in the hospital. The man she'd cut all ties with was seated in an uncomfortable plastic chair, holding her hand in both of his.

That had been the first time she'd ever seen the man cry. And it had broken her heart than anything else. He looked like he had aged thirty years instead of ten.

Sitting there, he had come clean. The truth that had tried to hide for nearly thirty five years had come spilling forth like a broken dam. Years of pain, loss and regret had finally found an outlet. Lying on the cold hospital bed, having just lost the man she'd loved, she felt an overwhelming sense of crushing pain. That moment, looking at the man who had raised her, for the first time she had uttered the word that had broken the man. She had called him 'Dad' for the first time in twenty-seven years.

Hearing footsteps behind her, she snapped out of her reverie. It was only Nell.

"Sorry, looked like you were pretty deep. Didn't want to disturb you," she said quietly. She held a coffee cup holder in one hand and two paper packets in the other. "The greasiest burger and fries I could find." Nell smiled when Kate smiled hopping down from her perch.

* * *

On the drive back towards Deeks' place, Kate looked at side mirror, a frown on her face.

"I think we're being tailed," she said. Nell looked at rear view mirror.

"Black sedan, behind the convertible? I think I saw it back at the motel too," Nell said. "Hang tight." She quickly changed lanes.

But the guy in the sedan was good. Even after multiple squeezes through the narrowest of lanes, it stuck on like an insistent fly.

Kate looked back, confused. The guy wasn't even trying to hide the fact that he was tailing them. "Something's wrong," she said, pulling out her phone. She dialed Callen's number. After three rings, he picked it up. She hit the speakerphone mode.

_"Calle-"_

"We're being followed. Black sedan, no license plates. Two guys. Can't see their faces."

_"Where are you?"_

She glanced out seeing the street sign flash past. She told him. In the background she could hear him talking to the others. In a moment, he came back on the line.

_"Keep the line open. Eric's just pulling up the video. Keep them at as much distance you can manage,"_ he said.

"Right. But hurry. My car isn't exactly up to the Italian job," Nell joked.

Despite the situation, they heard Callen chuckle.

_"Yeah, maybe after thi-"_

"Nell! Watch out!" Kate's scream cut through their conversation.

The searing bright lights of a semi cut through their front seats, blinding Nell. A second later, the vehicle lurched away from its lane and headed straight towards them. There was nothing they could do, but watch in horrified curiosity as the semi tackled the tiny car like a bull.

* * *

On the big screen in Ops room, all stood rooted to their spot. Callen had been still holding the cell phone to his ear as he watched the red Mini Cooper go head to head with the trailer. The car swerved at the last second but still its end got clipped by the semi, throwing it into a spin. Instead to coming to a rest, it hit a parked car and flipped. It somersaulted three times before it finally came to rest on its side, now resembling a dented and wrecked metal box.

Kensi covered her mouth, unable to speak, eyes welling with tears. Even Deeks stared at the screen in horror. Eric looked ready to cry. Sean gripped his own cell phone tightly, almost cracking the thing.

Then after what seemed like a year, a figure hauled itself out of the broken driver's side window and dropped like a string less puppet on the asphalt. A second figure climbed out and slipped and fell out.

"They're okay. Send in a medical team, STAT," Callen barked at Eric. He hurried to his chair and dialed 911.

"Callen!" Sam's voice made him turn around to the screen just in time to see two black vans pull up at the crash site.

"That's not the paramedics-"

Eight men spilled out of the two vans, and converged on the two women near the crashed Cooper. They recognized Kate as she stood up, supporting herself against the car; Nell was still on the ground, staring at the men and Kate's back. She had no choice to drop her gun which she had managed to pull out. She had to, for there were eight UMPs pointed right at them. She couldn't risk Nell getting hurt.

The agents could only watch with growing helplessness as four of them grabbed them. Nell was visibly limping when they pushed them into the back. Just before they pushed Kate into the back, she looked up and directly looked at the traffic camera nearest to her.

The look was clear. _Get the bastards. _

__**Please review. They're like cupcakes... Just click the blue button.**


	9. Chapter 9

**Probably my second last entry before I leave for college. Medical school is supposed to be scary. Thank you all for the wonderful reviews and the encouragement. I hope you're still enjoying the story.**

**A/N: Nope, don't own it... :(**

Chapter 9

Consciousness came back to Kate slowly. Her eyelids felt like they'd been lined with lead. Her mouth felt dry and the sudden nauseating taste on her tongue made her want to gag. Peeling her eyes open, she stared into the darkness. Slowly her night vision kicked in. She could make out the surroundings better.

Looking up she realized she had been hung from the rafters with chains. But they had handcuffed her to them, the sharp edge digging into her wrists, nicking skin, drawing blood. From somewhere a draught was blowing in, making her goose bumps all over her skin. She groaned in annoyance noting that she'd been stripped to her V-necked tee and jeans. Her boots, socks were missing; so were her watch, her wallet and to her serious indignation the flattened bullet that she wore on a leather cord around her neck. It was more of an emotional value than sentimental. It certainly didn't have any monetary value. She thought about it for a minute, her odd lucky charm, and an everyday reminder of her mortality.

Her arms were straining but she couldn't take the pressure of them; she was hung almost a foot from the dusty floor. A scuffling noise caught her attention. She turned her head as best as she could. A figure was tied to the pole to her left.

"Nell? Is that you?" she was going cross eyed to keep the person in the line of vision. It spiked the dull throbbing behind her eyes, not helping her at all. Whoever it was made a soft groaning sound, which was soon followed by rattling of chains. Then a tiny groggy voice said, "Kate…?"

"Nell? Are you okay?"

* * *

Nell slowly focused on what she had first mistaken to be a hanging sack of some sort. It was Kate. A tiny gasp of squeaky surprise escaped her. Kate's voice made her focus n her. She hung painfully by her wrists from the rafters.

"Oh my god, Kate-" she began.

"Are you okay?" Kate interrupted her.

"A little sore. But I'm okay," she replied. "And you?"

"Feeling the wonderful thing called gravity," came the reply. "Did they duck tape you or just chain you?"

Nell tried moving but it was very limited. The only good thing was the chain links were fairly large and her small stature made it possible to move her arms. "Chained. But I can move. Not much but enough."

"That's good," she heard the older woman say.

She about to ask what good it was getting chained when a muffled bang caught both their attention. Heavy footsteps reached them before at least ten men swung into their view.

Karlov didn't bother hiding his face like the rest eight of them. The other unmasked man was the bodyguard from the alley.

"Look what we have here. Two birdies in one stone, da?"

Kate rolled her eyes. "What do you want Karlov. Boy you have some serious death wish, showing your ugly mug after all that you've done and emphasis on _ugly_."

That got her a rifle butt to the head. The gash on her temple from the accident reopened and blood gushed out, blinding her. The pain that came nearly made her throw up what little she had in her stomach. Through the ringing in her ears, she heard Nell screaming.

"Stop it," Karlov said, raising one hand.

"Don't you dare touch her," Kate said, staring at the Russian with pure hatred in her eyes.

Karlov smiled. Then he leaned in and breathed, "Now that is more like the Katherine Blackwood the world knows. Let's see if Director Crowe still cares for his pet tigress." He turned around and motioned to one of the faceless men.

In a flurry of activity, a camcorder was set up on a tripod. One of the men pointed his gun at her, a silent warning against any sudden moves. Kate wasn't planning on it. Nell had two trigger happy morons in front of her. They unhooked the chains and dropped her like a sack of potatoes. Pins and needles in her feet nearly made her lose her balance. One pushed her to a chair and started tying a rope around her torso, before duck-taping her legs to the chair. Her cuffed hands lay on her lap. Nell was placed on a similar chair and dragged to Kate.

Nell looked terrified but there was something else in her dark hazel eyes.

"Let's call Director Crowe. I'm sure he'll be pleased to hear from you, Katherine," Karlov sneered. "As will your faithful sidekick, Sean Winchester, da?"

And for the first time she'd been captured, Kate felt an icy fist grip her heart.

* * *

The mood in the OSP was grim. It was half past two in the morning, yet no one noticed the lateness.

Callen was breathing down Eric's neck as the techie worked feverishly on the computer. Finally Sam dragged him away, for the sake of Eric's health than Callen's. As they walked down the stairs, they saw the rest of the team in huddle with the rest of the Sigma.

Except Sean. He sat away from the others, half in shadows.

Hetty caught Callen's eye and silently beckoned him. He changed direction at the foot of the stairs. He walked over to the Operations Manager who was gravely surveying the scenario.

"Any word on the sedans that were in the crime scene?" she asked looking up at him. He shook his head.

By the time they'd reached the intersection, all that was left was the crumpled Mini Cooper, lying like a chewed toy. They had found blood on the passenger side seat; not much fortunately, but it had been clear Kate had been injured. Callen had found something else dangling from the broken side view mirror; a flattened piece of metal hanging from a torn leather cord. Running the slightly round disc in his fingers he'd realized it was a bullet, the remnant of a high velocity target one.

Hetty must've been attuned to his thoughts for she gestured him to sit. He did, not sure if wanted to face the rest of the team. He knew it wasn't his fault. Yet he should have been more careful. He shouldn't have let them leave without protection.

"Drink," Hetty voice pulled him out of his mundane thoughts. He looked at the dainty cup in front of him and picked it up. The tea was warm and very strong.

"How long have you known Kate?" he asked. He pulled out a clear evidence bag, inside which lay the flattened bullet. Hetty looked at it with a strange expression. It was of a welling sense of loss, an underlying river of grief. "Hetty?" he gently prompted when the tiny operations manager didn't speak.

"I met Kate Blackwood when she was on her first overseas mission in Afghanistan. Did you know she had a degree in journalism from Georgetown? After graduating, she joined the _Washington Post_ and was immediately referred to for an assignment overseas. Mostly because she could speak their language a native. This was before she became an operative. She went by her middle name Annabelle back then. Annie, I remember she introduced herself as.  
She was sent to cover a story on American militia on Peshawar soil. She was a born operative even back then. With the help of an NCIS agent, she uncovered enough to guarantee a death warrant on herself. Unfortunately, there was little boy with Annie when she had been undercover there. He had become close to her and Annie had promised to get him out of the war torn country. But that ever happened. An assault team ambushed them. The little Afghan boy died in her arms with a bullet in his chest." She looked at the metal lying on the oak table.

Something rattled in Callen's intuition.

"Who was the agent?"

Hetty looked up, eyes magnified in her spectacles.

"Agent Peter Sullivan. He and Annie were both airlifted out of Afghanistan in critical condition. Sullivan succumbed to his injures soon after his surgery. It was in the hospital that I first met Kate Blackwood. She wrote her story from the hospital. An outstanding piece. She was justifiably nominated for a Pulitzer and she won it too. But the cost had been far greater than she could ever repay. She got her story, but lost the little boy. She kept the bullet ever since. She was only 21 back then. I told her not to quit. I'm glad she didn't. Maybe she reminded me of someone."

"Who?"

Hetty smiled a little. "You."

Callen paused a moment before asking her, "Did you know that Kate was my half-sister?"

"I didn't, Mr. Callen, because I never found out about your father. And Kate is related to you by the same father."

* * *

Sean looked up when someone nudged his shoulder.

Nate handed him a mug of coffee and sat down in the nearest chair. "Drink it. The caffeine's probably a life saver," he said, smiling gently.

"Thanks."

Nate studied the man sitting in front of him. As a trained psychologist he was well versed in reading body language; yet he could barely read the agent. His posture was tense, yet a controlled sense of calmness shrouded him. His emerald eyes were fixed on the mug he was holding, but his mind was definitely not in the room.

"Hey King, we found something."

They both looked at Bishop who stood by the pillar. He nodded to Sean who stood up. Nate followed them upstairs in the Ops room.

Eric was talking as he worked on his tablet PC.

"I pulled up the videos of the two black sedans. Fortunately they both had license plates. Running them through the kaleidoscope, I cross referenced them all the traffic cams, ATM cams and anything not on the close circuit, and found this." He fired up the big screen and screenshots popped up all over it. In each of them, the two cars were the centre shot.

"In the past three days, they've been to an old dock in west L.A. and multiple empty properties in that area. Unless Karlov's suddenly buying houses, I'm guessing that's where Kate and Nell are."

Sean turned towards Bishop. "Get the hardware together. We leave within the hour."

"But they could be anywhere," Callen said.

"Then we look everywhere," Sean said, towering over him. Bishop and Knight placed a hand on his forearm. Callen stood his ground. Right now he had two women he cared about in harm's way. The sense of protectiveness that came for Kate had been more like a suppressed memory. But even he was surprised about the emotions that he associated with Nell Jones.

The doors to the Ops room slid open. Hetty walked in. Aware of everyone's eyes on her, she slid into the nearest chair. That was so unlike her that Callen stepped away from the ex-Secret Service agent and moved towards her.

"Hetty, what's wrong?"

She looked ill. Callen looked at the rest of them, and this time Kensi moved forward.

"Hetty. You're scaring us. What is it?"

"Mr. Beale, please open the file that Director Crowe sent the NCIS. It's named KN."

Eric dutifully did that. A video link opened up and everyone gasped. Kate and Nell were tied to chairs, hands duck-taped to the armrests. But that wasn't the worst part. Although Nell looked positively terrified, she appeared unharmed except the bruise along one side of her jaw; possibly from the accident.  
Kate however looked like she'd gone twelve rounds with a bull. A bloody gash on her temple was still bleeding. A bruise was forming on her left side of her face; a split lip red and puffy. Blood coated her neck which had dried leaving reddish smears all over her tank top and shoulders. The old shoulder scar stood out in stark contrast to her now slightly flushed skin. Head hanging, she looked exhausted and drugged.

Sean clenched his fists involuntarily.

"Play it, Eric," Callen said, when Hetty didn't. The old woman seemed to be in shock, which in turn was worrying Sam and the rest. She never ever lost her calm in any sign of danger. She never showed it no matter what bothering her. And to see her like that was freaking Deeks out the most.

_"Director Crowe. It's been too long, da? And Mr. Winchester too." _

Everyone sent a brief glance at the man who stood rigidly, eyes on the screen. Karlov crossed over to the brunette and grabbing a fistful of the copper hair, dragged her head up. Kate let out a strangled cry. Gritting her teeth she took deep breaths.

_"As you can see, your little wildcat hasn't still learned not to stay away from fire."_ He tut-tutted, letting go of her. Her head dropped back. But she managed to aim a murderous look at the Russian. _"Maybe you should have thought twice before harming my baby brother."_

He crossed over to Nell, who sat rigidly in her seat, blinking rapidly. He almost affectionately patted her head and continued, _"I don't know who this little darling is. But nevertheless, I'm sorry for her loss."_ He abruptly turned away and when he faced the camera, he held a syringe in his hand. _"Last time Kate Blackwood won, but this time, I wouldn't be so confident. You see, I have less than a year to live, courtesy of the uranium powder she made me inhale. And I don't want anything. But it gives me great pleasure to say that I won't be going alone to the ад- hell- alone."_

Before anyone could react, he jammed the needle into Kate's neck. Nell screamed as Kate let out a strangled yell, back arching painfully against her restraints. When Karlov moved away, Kate's eyes rolled back and her head fell onto her chest.

_"She isn't dead. Not yet. She has exactly eighteen hours before she's dead. You can't save everyone, Sean Winchester. Maybe you should've tried to protect your beautiful wife and your lovely daughter instead of her. You remember it don't you, Agent Winchester?"_

Everyone sent a quick glance at the man who stood rigidly, fists clenched.

_"Director Crowe, you lose. I take out the Queen, one of your best and you lose the game."_

The screen turned to hash.

No one moved in the Ops room. Emma had tears in her eyes, so did Kensi. Deeks looked ready to hurl, seasoned cop he was. Dean quietly put an arm around the blond agent. Callen stared at the screen, lost in thought. Sean seemed to have turned to stone. He struggled to breathe. He felt like he had taken a cannonball to the gut.

"Play it again," Callen said, startling everyone.

Albeit confused and still reeling from the shock, Eric hit the replay button.

"Zoom in on Nell," Sam said, suddenly realizing what Callen was getting at.

Nell stared at the camera, tearful and scared, lips trembling. But-

_She was blinking rapidly. Almost as if-_

"Morse codes. Waves- ch-church bells- construction noise- _McDonalds_?" Callen translated, confused at the last word. "Damn!"

"Run the vectors. It has to be in or around L.A. All routes are monitored."

"On it." Eric was already one step ahead as he began typing furiously, suddenly hopeful. "Way to go Rockstar," he muttered, praying they'd get to them in time.

**Let me know what you think... not a cliffy cause I hate them. I'm gonna miss the season 4 premiere of NCIS: LA and 10 of NCIS. Sniff!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Hey there! Thank you for all the wonderful reviews. Loved 'em. I'll be posting a few chapters now. And probably the entire story by today/(tonight for me). As I said before, I leave for this year's college tomorrow morning, so I've less than twelve hours. And I don't want to leave the story unfinished. **

**Thanks for the support!**

**A/N: Game is looking...game sees nothing!**

****Chapter 10

_Right.  
left.  
Uppercut_.

Sean could feel the force with which he hit the bag. And with each hit, he hit it harder. Soon his knuckles began to go numb yet he kept on punching the bag. The physical sensation wasn't enough to keep his mind trying to block out everything.

Sweat poured down his back, arms pistoned as he punched again and again. Biceps bulged with the exertion, shoulders hard as rock.

"_You can't save everybody."_

Julia. Macy. Kate.

_Kate._

His breathing became labored as he pictured her face. Her smile, her laugh, the way her nose twitched whenever he brought artery-choking breakfast as a white flag.

Five years. It had been five years since he'd come from the nearby grocery shop to find his kitchen a slaughterhouse. Kate was on the floor, unconscious and severely bleeding out from a neck wound, holding an already dead Macy in her arms. The high velocity round had gone through her right shoulder, shattering the clavicle and hit Macy in the head. And Julia was dead, three fatal GSW to her torso. Her brown eyes stared at the two other victims, as if trying to help them.

He knew Kate had blamed herself for losing them. She never looked him in the eye. He wasn't a stranger to survivor's guilt. But a tiny irrational part of him had blamed her. But it had been Kate who'd brought him back from the ledge he'd been standing. He'd never told anyone but his therapist how close he'd been to putting his Beretta in his mouth and pulling the trigger. She'd pulled him back never realizing what she'd done. And yet he'd kept her away from getting too close. It had taken time; but it had taken every ounce of his strength and will to put one foot in front of the other and get through the day.

That day five years ago something had changed. He'd put up walls that he never realized he was capable of. Funny how losing one's family could do that. He was afraid; of what he didn't know. Maybe going through something like that again.

Or maybe losing Kate.

He stopped the bag in mid swing, hugging it like a life line. He staggered away, shaking. He tried to stop, but he couldn't. The tears trickled down his face, catching his two days' worth of stubble. He fell to his knees suddenly as realization hit him like a semi.

_He couldn't lose Kate_.

* * *

Water splashed into her face woke Kate up. She gagged as some of it went down the wrong way. Spluttering and the owner of a massive headache, she glared at whoever had done it.

"Try poking next time, assbutt," she said, spitting out water.

"Shut up," the man growled. But he poked Nell awake, pissing off Kate. He uncuffed one of her wrists then re-cuffed it around a pole. He did the same to Kate. Then he placed two plastic plates in front of them.

"Eat." He turned and left.

None of them commented on the McDonald meal box. It seemed like hours since they'd eaten something. Once finished, Kate leaned against the wall, closing her eyes, feeling suddenly exhausted. The new bruises and tender ribs made movement difficult. Her jaw ached from where one of the men had punched her. Nell sat a few feet away, legs stretched out in front of her. They'd been moved to floor, wrists cuffed too tightly around pipes.

Noticing the brunette's pallor, Nell asked, "You don't look good. You okay?"

"Yeah? Well I feel worse. Whatever they jammed in me packs helluva punch," she replied, eyes closed. In truth, her head was killing her. Stabs of blinding pain shot between her eyes if she tried focusing on something for too long.

"I tried to send them a message."

Nell's whisper made Kate open her eyes. She raised an eyebrow in silent question. Nell looked around as if expecting someone listening to them. Then she lowered her voice and explained, "When they were videotaping us, I kept staring at the camera and blinked in Morse codes. I just hope one of them figures out."

Kate let out a breath, nausea building up. Taking few breaths, she asked, "Did Karlov say anything else? I kinda don't remember it."

Nell's face fell and tears brimmed in her hazel eyes.

"What is it?" Kate asked, as Nell burst into quiet sobs, looking terrified.

"They injected with some poison. You-you have less than eighteen hours before it kicks in." She hiccupped. "I-I'm sorry."

"For what?" Kate tried to stop her voice from shaking.

"I should've done something." She looked scared and guilty.

"Don't be stupid, kid. It's good you didn't. That made them think you weren't much of a threat. You did good, kiddo."

Kate fell silent. She didn't know how long she had before she dropped dead. But hell if she wasn't going out fighting. They hadn't seen a woman on a mission.

She looked at Nell, eyes focused despite the poison slowly flowing through her, pushing her closer to the edge.

"Nell, I hope you aren't too attached to that earring."

**Next chapter coming up in an hour! Please review... pretty please!**


	11. Chapter 11

**Here's the next one. All mistakes are solely mine. Not beta'ed.**

**Just a little heads up- there's Densi!  
Nope, still don't own it!**

****Chapter 11

The sun filtered through the Spanish monastery styled windows falling on Kensi who was curled up on the couch, half lying on Deeks. She opened her eyes, immediately realizing her predicament.

"Morning Fern," Deeks quiet voice made her wince. She was hoping to make her exit smoothly. She sat up, untangling herself from her partner. He sat up too, rubbing his eyes tiredly. He looked sleep deprived.

"Coffee?" he asked, voice quiet. She nodded but neither of them moved. His blue eyes searched her mismatched brown ones.

"You okay?" he asked, reaching for her hand. She let him and nodded.

"Bull," he said, receiving a tiny glare. He rubbed her cold hands between his. "We'll get them back," he said. "It isn't like Dom." He seemed to hit he nail right on the head. Kensi took a sharp breath.

"Isn't it?" she said. "They don't want anything, we don't where they are. Kate has less than thirty hours. What if-?" he cut her off by placing a finger against her lips, although knowing that could've earned him yet another dislocated finger like the last time. But she didn't do anything. Her eyes dropped to her hand still encased in one of his.

"We'll find them. Besides, Kate's as kick ass as someone I know. She won't go down without a fight. And she'll keep Nell safe."

"Poor Nell. Damn that girl should tell Callen-" Kensi almost bit her tongue off. Deeks' eyes narrowed.

"Tell him what?" he asked curious.

"Nothing."

"Fern?"

"It's none of your business, Deeks."

"Nell's got a crush on Callen, doesn't she?" he said figuring out. He was a detective. The next moment, Kensi punched him. "You breathe a word, and I'll come after you with Hetty's letter opener."

Deeks smiled. "Damn! Callen's gonna-"

"Deeks!"

"What? Wait, he already knows. You ladies weren't exactly quiet back at the gym the other day."

"You-" Kensi spluttered, mortified. _What else had he heard?_

"Yes, Sugarbear?" he said, sweetly, enjoying a rather flustered Kensi Marie Blye. "Something you wanna tell me?" his voice changed completely. Kensi froze. She wasn't good at this. Not now. She made the mistake of looking into his ocean blue eyes. They seemed to stare right through her soul.

He reached up and placed one hand on her neck, thumb brushing her jaw. Heart pounding, Kensi stared at him. He seemed nervous too. Then she threw caution to the wind and leaned up slightly, enough to brush her lips across his. He seemed to have frozen too. But he caught up pretty quickly. He leaned in and captured her lips in a sweet kiss.

The whistle pierced the silence like an arrow. They jumped apart, almost toppling off the couch.

"Guys!" Eric literally screamed. "I think I found them."

The next instant nine agents and Hetty raced into the Ops room.

Eric looked slightly manic from the lack of sleep and adrenaline. His glasses were crooked and his usual surfer nerd attitude replaced by a suppressed jubilation.

"Talk," was all Callen said. Sam, Sean and Bishop joined them.

"So I ran all the vectors that Nell gave. Including McDonalds. And there were two hits. Both in opposite sides of each other. First one, about two hours drive from here, an isolated strip of coast, few miles off East Malibu. An old Baptist church stands there, and get this- church bells ring every morning at 2, 4 and 6 am. It's a tourist attraction and hence the McDonalds. New seashore condos are in construction. Matches all the vectors."

"What's the other?"

Eric pulled up another location beside the first one.

"About an hour out of San Diego. Again matches all the vectors." Eric looked at them.

"Could be in either of them," Sam said.

"Maybe not. Eric, check all entry points on the highway from L.A. to San Diego. See if you can get the two sedans on any stretch of that road between the time of ambush and the time stamp on that video. Something tells me they're in Malibu."

* * *

The room was quiet except the slightly labored breathing of the brunette who was trying to unlock the cuffs. Nell had fallen asleep, despite her best efforts. There was no way of knowing the time. But her internal clock told it was nearing middle of the day.

In the back of her head, Kate could almost hear the clock ticking down. She had less than ten hours. Already she could feel the effects of the poison. Her hands shook very slightly; her head pounded and a permanent stabbing had taken residence behind her left eye. She felt nauseous again. She stopped. Taking a few deep breaths she tried clearing her head.

When she felt slightly better, she began concentrating again. The single earring wasn't much to begin with but it was all she had; and that she could barely move her wrists without the metal cutting into the skin.

_Snick._

The left cuff clicked open, and Kate started working on the other one quickly. Soon it came undone. She rubbed her raw and sore wrists trying to regain the circulation. Making sure no one was going to make a sudden entrance, she crawled over to Nell and shook her awake. Nell jerked awake and seemed puzzled when she saw Kate kneeling to her side, working on her cuff. She sat up straighter so that Kate could work faster.

"Kate." She looked up. "What?"

"Your eyes. Do they hurt?" Kate frowned. She blinked couple of times; then shook her head. "Why?"

Nell indicated her own eyes. "They're bloodshot, and look painful." "I don't feel anything…yet," she added. "I'm guessing I don't have enough time. So let's hurry up."

Nell's cuffs came off faster and they stood up. As an afterthought, Kate picked up the ten pound chain lying a few feet away, wrapping it around her right forearm and swung it, testing. Once satisfied they moved forward. Nell picked up a broken piece of wood from the rafters and held it like a batter.

At the foot of the stairs, Kate stopped, ears strained. It was quiet save for the distant sound of crashing waves and cawing of seagulls; then started up them. The door was shut, but thankfully not locked. She gripped the doorknob and turned it. It opened without a squeak. Slowly Kate pushed it further and took a quick turkey peek. The room was empty.

It looked a just finished inside of a luxurious condo. The bare white washed walls smelled of fresh paint. Sunlight streamed in through the floor to ceiling glass walls from the right. Beyond the windows was a pool, after which a small garden stood. Far away the blue sea was visible. In their bare feet, their footsteps made almost no noise on the dark paneled wood on the floor.

"Nice digs," she heard Nell mutter.

They kept away from the window, which was a little hard; most of the windows were glass. She chuckled humorlessly as she reflected on her own place back at CrystalCity. Her place had mostly glass.

She stopped frequently, eyes and ears scanning grid by grid. Nell kept to her back.

Suddenly Kate stopped, stomach churning violently, vision swimming. She grabbed the doorframe, trying not to throw up. She was aware she was shaking.  
"Kate?" She heard Nell's panicked voice. Her head felt like someone was trying to poke a hot rod into her brain. "I'm fine," she said, forcing her eyes open and removing her hand from the doorframe. "I'm okay."

Nell looked at the older woman, uncertain. Kate was far from okay. Cheeks flushed, her eyes were bright with an incoming fever. She could almost feel the feverish heat radiating off her. She prayed that it wasn't too late already.

* * *

"Eric, talk to me," Callen said, from the passenger seat of the Mercedes. Sean, who was driving, glanced at the open line cell phone.

"We found them. Karlov I mean. Sixty-eight miles to the west, I'm sending the coordinates and directions to your phones now. And guys, I also ran a satellite and thermal imagery. There are at least thirty people out there. Meaning-"

"More than two dozens guns for hire," Sam said. Callen looked in the side mirror, where he saw the black Challenger behind them. Two more Audi Q7s were in tow. Bishop was riding shotgun with Sam; an unspoken Navy SEAL bond, no matter the age difference or location. Kensi and Deeks were in with the rest of Sigma. They were armed to the teeth, with DARPA's latest technology.

As they flew down the sea side highway, they broke about every speed limit.

"Get them back safely, Mr. Callen." Hetty's voice barely veiled the concern.

"I will." Callen had no doubt.

He wasn't going to lose his family. _Again._

**Please do review!**


	12. Chapter 12

**As promised. Here we go... Don't own it. **

****Chapter 12

Kate caught Nell before she fell.

"Sorry," Nell said, embarrassed. She aimed a glare at the pile of plastic tarp that had nearly been her undoing. The floor in the back of the place was piled with construction supplies. Paint tubs, brushes, wooden ladders-

"Yes," Kate said softly, kneeling and searching through hardware supplies box and pulled out a sturdy looking wrench. She dug in like a kid in a ball pit and produced two more tools that could easily work as assault weapons. She stood up and handed one to Nell. "How good are you at swinging?"

"Played baseball in high school; was the team captain," replied Nell holding the proffered wrench in a sure way. Kate grinned. "Drop and just swing it near the knee caps; as hard as you can. No Kevlar there."

"Yes Queen," Nell replied, dipping her chin, looking determined.

They started moving again, when Kate stopped and suddenly turned around. "And Nell? Next time you see my brother, just kiss the damn guy. It's more than obvious he likes you. From what I've seen, he holds things too close to the vest. An unfortunate genetic trait, I'm afraid."

Despite the circumstances, Nell blushed. She opened her mouth to reply something about Sean when Kate suddenly, grabbed her arm and pulled back from the window. She peered out carefully, swearing.

"Dammit!"

"What is it?"

"At least six out there. All with MP5s. It's like going to war with a toothpick."

"How about upstairs? There has to be someone on the lookout in case the prisoners somehow manage to escape." Kate smiled.

"Good one. Come on, but stay behind me." Nell nodded.

The stairway was clear; clearly they hadn't expected someone to go upstairs. They went up, quickly yet quietly. At the top, she quickly turkey peeked again. A man stood on the open terrace, his back to them. He had hired mercenary stamped all over him; the way he carried his sniper rifle in the crook of his arm, the causal yet alert stance.

She looked up, where the stairs continued, then back at the man. Finally she turned to Nell and said, "We need a diversion. Go downstairs, pick up the heaviest thing you can find then drop it."

"What're you gonna do?"

Kate gave her an impish smile. "You'll see."

As soon as Nell tiptoed back down the stairs, Kate took position. Gripping a ten inch screwdriver in hand, she waited.

_Bang!_

Even Kate winced. But it did its job. The turned around, gun arcing high, searching for the source of the noise. He started moving towards the staircase. He lifted his radio, but hesitated. _Thank you_, Kate mentally said.

_Come on, come on._

Predictably, he stopped at the topmost step, and peered down. His hesitation was his final mistake. Silently as an owl, she dropped from the banisters, and onto his back. Clamping one hand on his mouth, she plunged the crude weapon from behind into his head. The soft bone at the back of his head offered too little resistance. She hit the brain stem, killing the man instantly. She slid off as the dead body slumped to the ground. He hadn't even had the time to cry out; eyes open wide in shock.

Kate leaned the limp body on the wall before standing up. She called down to her companion.

Nell gave a squeak as she saw the dead man. Kate was already kneeling in front of him, quickly and methodically going through the weapons and ammo. She reached up, and closed the man's eyes. Beside the sniper rifle, she found a pair of Ka-Bar knives, a nickel plated Beretta with an attached silencer and a radio. A .38 caliber was sheathed in an ankle holster.

Nell watched her. No wonder Kate Blackwood was called The Ghost.

_You can't kill what you never saw coming._

"Nell." She snapped out of it, realizing Kate was holding up the .38. "You can shoot right?" Nell nodded. She checked the ammo before sliding it back into place and turning the safety on.

Kate crept to the open window and said, "How about we make a run for it?"

* * *

"What is it, Mr. Beale?"

Eric looked at Hetty.

"I think you should see this." He quickly typed something and two images dominated the large screen.

"This is from an hour ago. The thermal imagery satellite showed exactly thirty seven dots. That would mean thirty four hired bodyguards. And this is the recent one." With another click, the image refreshed.

"It's down to thirty four. Karlov hasn't left the compound. Neither has anyone."

Hetty looked at the screen, sighing. "How far are the rest?"

"Seventy minutes out."

"Too long, Eric. Too long. Get me the chief of LAPD's SWAT. And also have medical teams at standby. Two against thirty one was _never_ a good odd."

Eric looked at the screen, suddenly fearful of his friend's safety.

* * *

"Right. Thanks, Eric." Callen slipped his phone shut and shoved it in his back pocket. He walked back to the grove of trees where their cars were parked, hidden from direct view of the gated community.

"Hits down to thirty. Excluding Karlov, Kate and Nell."

"That was fast," Deeks said as he shimmied into his body armor. "On second thoughts, these are cool. Maybe Hetty should get these."

"LBA. Liquid body armor. Flexible as hell, just stay away from live wires, or you'll be a prisoner in your own suit," Knight said, zipping up. "Avoid any hits to joint areas. Otherwise movements' difficult. The armor hardens like a cement like substance on impact."

"Got it."

Bishop looked at Sean who stood at the back of an Audi, going through the blue prints. He was already wearing his body armor, guns strapped to his holsters.

"You okay?"

Sean looked up. In the sunlight his emerald eyes almost looked hazel. Bishop didn't have to be a psychic to see what was going through the man's head. Although years in Secret Service had taught him the best poker face, Bishop could almost see the wheels and gears whirring in his head. Sean dropped his eyes back on the blueprints. His shoulders were tense, eyebrows furrowed.

"Kate's not Julia, Sean. She's still here. It's not too late." When Sean looked up back again, Bishop added in a softer voice, "It's been five years. What holding you back?"

Instead of replying he chucked the rolled up sheet into the trunk and reached up to pull the lid shut.

"I'm fine, Parker. Kate's already having too much fun and that's what scares me. Don't wanna be late to the party."

"SWAT's out in twenty. Medics on standby," Sam informed them when they joined the rest of the rescue team. Emma was checking her ammo.

"Late yet again," Kensi said.

"Your earmics are good, set to ULF. In that case, our AXS jammers won't affect them. It's been modified to cancel out ambient noise," Rook said, tapping his earmic.

"Right. We can't lose any more precious minutes. Let's move out."

"And Deeks, if you start humming the theme from the S.W.A.T. movie, I swear I'll shoot you myself," Kensi warned.

**Still editing the end. Please review!**


	13. Chapter 13

**Story's finished. Yes!**

Chapter 13

"Six down, I don't know how many are even left," Kate said, sliding back the magazine into the Beretta. Nell was sitting beside her, clutching another in her hand.

Taking out the snipers had been tricky but not impossible. But they hadn't dared more than few. Only the perimeter had radios and updated regularly. Otherwise Kate would've taken them out in the beginning.

In the meantime, Kate had slipped out and scoped out the surroundings.

"Alright, you stay here. I'll make another round. There has to be a chink in the outer perimeter. There always is. All I need-" Kate stopped, clutching her stomach. She doubled over, feeling like something was trying to claw its way up her windpipe. She coughed and spat out blood. Nell had gotten up and rubbed her back.

"You look like shit, Kate. Are you okay?"

Kate straightened up, feeling dizzy and lightheaded. In the back of her she wondered if Karlov had lied about the deadline. He was the kind of bloke who enjoyed a slow painful death.

"I'm fine," she said, wiping her mouth. In truth she wasn't even in the _zip code_ of okay.

"Kate-"

"Nell, chances are we'll _both_ make it. Stay here, and keep an eye out. I'll try to make a way out. There's wall just behind this building, about a couple of hundred yards away. When I give the signal, make a run for it. You hear me?"

"What're you gonna do?" she asked, her voice calm but spoke volumes that she was scared.

"You'll hear it."

"Just be careful."

"Always am," she joked, standing up and holstering the twin Berettas and jamming the Ka-Bar in its sheath.

The Sigma moved like the wind. Pawn and Knight silently and efficiently took out the perimeter. None of the ten saw them coming. In the midst, Rook, Kensi and Deeks moved, covering each other. The UMPs became useless when Rook turned the AXS5 on, rendering a fraction of the enemies' weapons useless. By the time they pulled out the backups, they were dead.

Sam and Callen took the east side while Sean and Bishop went towards the left, scouring and clearing it grid by grid.

_"Guys, I read fourteen heat signatures. I'm sending the exact location to your phones."_

"Thanks, Eric. Find Karlov and locate Kate and Nell."

_"On it. SWAT's outside, waiting for your go. Medics at standby."_

* * *

Kate heard the muffled gun reports, and picked up the radio. Earlier, Nell had tweaked it to a different frequency so they could communicate.

"Nell, come in. You okay?"

The radio squawked with static before Nell's voice came in, slightly garbled. _"Yeah. I'm okay. You?"_

"I'm okay. Well unhurt. That wasn't me."

_"Came from the far side. HRT?"_

"They usually make more noise. Could be. Stay there till they come looking for you. You copy?"

"Yeah, I cop-"

Nell's scream cut through the receiver like a cannon.

"NELL!"

**Tiny cliffhanger. No worries, mate.**


	14. Chapter 14

**Little Nallen here. Even this guy needs some love! Kate's showdown with Karlov**

**A/N: Own nothing**

Chapter 14

Nell Jones felt her heart about to crawl out of her mouth just as a pair of steel hard arms clamped around her and yanked her back into the room. Heart pounding, she struggled and in her panic, kicked back. Her gun clattered away. But from the pained grunt, she realized one of her flailing limbs had connected. Emboldened by that, she threw her head back, hitting whoever right on the nose. The arms loosened and she wrestled out.

"Jesus, Nell. It's me," said a voice.

Heart still thundering like a diesel train, she turned around. Callen gave a crooked grin. Then he rubbed his nose.

"You okay? Nell?" he frowned, concerned when she just kept staring at him. Her hazel eyes seemed huge. He moved forwards, reaching out to touch her on the shoulder. A moment later he staggered back, almost ending up on his butt as Nell rushed forward and threw her arms around his neck, hugging him fiercely.

Hesitating for a second, he enveloped her in a secure hug, rubbing her back.

"It's okay. We got you- I got you." Finally Nell pulled back, suddenly embarrassed at her uncontrolled display of emotions. She nodded, trying to give a tiny smile.

"You good?" Callen gently asked, one hand still on her arm, rubbing soothingly.

"Nothing that a few hundred Oreos won't fix," she replied, making Callen chuckle.

"That's my girl," he said.

"_We heard that," _Deeks said, sounding smug. Callen was suddenly really thankful, Nell didn't have a comm.

"I have Nell," he said instead.

_"Copy that,"_ Kensi replied. Then added as an afterthought, _"And make sure you don't let her go."_

"Callen out," he said, eyes on the redhead.

Bishop's voice came in urgent.

_"I have eyes on Kate. South east side. King and I are going after her. Bishop out."_

"Copy that."

* * *

Feet pounding, Kate ran like a cheetah. The last house loomed up as she made her way carefully.

She spotted one guard on the front porch, and another one in the side entrance. Silently as a ghost she crossed over to the clump of trees. She dropped flat on the ground and did a grid by grid search of the place. She knew Karlov was here. This was the only fully furnished property and the fact that from her position she counted at least four armed guards.

The side door that led to the kitchen was open, and although she saw no one there, she knew they were watching her.

Knowing she had exactly one chance, she stood up and streaked towards the door. Encountering no one, she slipped in through the side door. She stopped, waited before pulling out her gun. Making sure the silencer was fitted; she leveled it high and started moving, scanning grid by grid.

The entire lower floor was empty.

Except the guard on the front porch. Silently, she moved to the front, ducking instinctively as the guard rounded the corner. It took a moment for the guy to open fire. Kate ducked behind the nearest pillar before the bullets took a chunk out of her. In the wake of full auto from an MP5, her bullet proof vest would be as effective as tissue paper.

Still, chipped chunks of wooden floor and furniture flew everywhere. One fragment hit her face, leaving a trail of blood in its wake. As soon as she heard the sound of empty magazine sliding out, she pulled out and fired. The first one was aimed at the floor. The actual bullet did no damage, but it lured the assailant slightly from his hiding position. That was enough. The second and the third bullet did the jobs. She aimed for the temple. Through her pounding headache, she missed slightly. It hit the man in the eye, blowing the right side of his head off like a watermelon.

As she saw the body drop, she made her way to it. Half his face was missing, she didn't have to check for a pulse. Searching quickly, she grabbed a fully loaded gun.

She stood up too quickly and had to slam a hand on the nearest stable surface. Her vision swam and she tasted bile in the back of her throat. She was rapidly burning up. For a moment she wondered if Karlov had lied about the deadline. He would get a kick out of it if she suddenly dropped dead.

Taking deep breaths she hoped what adrenaline she had would be enough to finish her job.

With that thought came another disturbing one.

No one had come down to investigate. There was no way in hell someone would've missed the reports from the submachine gun.

Immediately she lifted both guns in her hands. There was no sound as she walked to the foot of the staircase. Slowly she started climbing one step at a time, eyes scanning grid by grid. At the landing she paused. She had a good view of the hallway and the doors leading off into various rooms. But what caused her radar to clang was the fact it was empty.

_"Agent Blackwood, I was wondering how long it would take you to join us."_

Years of training made it possible that she didn't jump at the disembodied voice.

"Yeah? Traffic was really bad. Sorry if I kept you waiting, _asshole_."

She heard a rather amused chuckle. Then it said, _"The last door to the left of the hallway, Agent."_

She knew it was an ambush with a capital A. Yet, her chances were wafer thin.

Karlov was seated in a plush chair, a tea tray laid out on a small table in front of him. He looked up, smiling like a toad that'd just gobbled a rather juicy fly. He had an excellent view of the sea. Three men stood at guard, eyes never leaving the new arrival.

"Ah, come in. Dmitri, if you please. Agent, please don't be violent. The carpet is an ancient Persian, handcrafted in the late 14th century. Blood would horribly spoil the beautiful artwork."

Dmitri, or rather Pug-Face as Kate had named him, took her twin guns and patted her down. Then he nodded to his boss. Karlov waved her forward towards the other empty chair opposite him.

She didn't sit.

"So what's in for you, Karlov? Besides taking me for a ride down under?"

"In all honesty, nothing. Although I'm curious about something. Tell me something, how come your partner can still bear being around you? Does he not despise you yet? He came to see me in prison while you were in the hospital. I apologized," he said, looking mildly chargined. "To hurt his family was never my intention. I love my own family."

Kate remained silent. Sean had never mentioned going to visit Karlov. Not even after she'd been released from the hospital after a month.

Karlov smiled again. "I'm assuming he never spoke of it. Understandable. It is painful to lose someone you love, da?"

"You of all people should know that Karlov. Oh wait, you don't. Yuri was the one who ratted you out, Karlov. He was never on your side to begin with."

For the first time, Karlov's face twisted into a sneer.

"You're lying. Yuri would never-"

"No? So how do reckon we got wind of your hideout in Ural Mountains in the first place? Like you had bragged, it was a really fabulous hiding place. Defied all satellite systems in the world. Yet we found you."

Karlov had stood up in his anger, now he looked deflated and betrayed.

"There's a saying in Hindu sacred poem, the Ramayana. _Gharbhedi Bibhishan_. It roughly translates to a traitor of a family, for the right reasons. Guess you can't trust your own family, right?"

Suddenly Karlov snatched away the MP5 from his nearest guard and racked the safety off. He pointed it at Kate, who slowly put up her hands.

"I think you've lived too long, Agent."

Several shots rang out, deafening her.

**Please review! They're like cups of strongest coffee!**


	15. Chapter 15

**Here we go. own nothing.**

Chapter 15

Outside, Sean and Bishop crouched behind the parked Escalade. Sean had his binoculars trained on the upper window. Through it he saw both Kate and Karlov.

"What the hell is she doing?"

He passed the binoculars to Bishop who took a brief glance before saying, "Lord knows. But it's Kate we're talking about. The lady usually has a plan, no matter how convoluted it might seem."

"That's what I'm worried about, Danny." Bishop glanced at him.

"Meaning?"

Sean exhaled a long breath. "She's too close to this."

"Says the man who's as bit close as his partner. Reopened wounds hurt more, Sean."

"Yeah, heard that one- shit! Bishop, we got a situation."

Bishop looked through his sniper scope, cursing when he saw Kate standing with her hands up.

"Can you get a clear head shot?" Sean asked, pulling out his gun, turning the safety off.

"What're you gonna do?"

"Save my partner, Danny." He sprinted off in the direction of the back door.

"Yeah, and I gotta save the two people who never realize that getting into trouble in every possible way isn't exactly a healthy lifestyle," he muttered, eyes glued to his scope. Then he realized what Kate was doing. He spotted her hands, fingers to be exact. At that moment he had to admit; the Queen did live up to her name.

Two seconds later, he fired, just as Karlov pulled the trigger.

* * *

Half blinded by the smoke and ears still ringing from reports at such close quarters, Kate looked out from her hiding place. In her case, the ornate chair. The ridiculously stuffed upholstery had worked like a pretty damn good bullet proof vest.

Karlov was dead on the carpet, a single Ka-Bar knife sticking out from his left jugular. Eyes staring wide, he wasn't going anywhere. Another of his guard was missing his lower half of his face.

"Kate!"

She looked up as Sean thundered into the scene, gun aimed high. He found Kate peeking out from behind the chair that was leaking goose feathers.

"Stopped for a burrito on the way?" she asked, standing up, brushing some of the feathers from her hair.

The flash of silver caught her attention and she moved away just in time. The knife missed her chest and embedded itself in her left bicep, tearing through muscle, tendon and skin.

She had completely missed the third bodyguard. Cursing at her own stupidity, she twirled back and kicked him, sending him flying. He brought up his gun, but never fired. His neck exploded in a grisly shower and the dead man flopped like a fish on the carpet.

Sean looked up from the newest dead to Kate. Immediately he realized there was something wrong.

Kate was holding the bloodied knife in her right hand. The left looked as if it had been dipped in a bloodbath. She swayed on the spot for a moment before her eyes rolled up and her legs gave away beneath her.

By the time Sean fell to his knees beside her, she had no heartbeat. There was no pulse. Beneath his hands her skin felt like an oven, burning. As he watched, a trickle of blood dribbled out from the corner of her mouth.

Kate Blackwood stopped breathing.

**Only a couple of chapters to review! pretty please (puppy dog eyes)**


	16. Chapter 16

**What happens to Kate? Read and find out!**

Chapter 16

The hospital room was colder than any morgue Sean had ever been to. The shades were drawn, plunging the room in semi darkness.

His eyes never left her, lying like a pale corpse on the bed. He'd stopped counting the hours after the first couple of days. He held on to her cold hand, trying to anchor himself in the harsh reality.

The doctors said she'd been lucky they got there in time. But only time would tell if she would wake up.

The ventilator made a swishing and hissing noise. Kate's lungs had stopped doing their job. The enormous mask on her face fogged as her breath hit them. It meant she was alive.

She had stopped breathing, going into cardiac arrest thrice. Once in the ambulance, once on the operating table. The third time it was in the recovery. He'd been holding her hand when her heart had almost bailed. The code blue crashed through the hallways and he'd been thrown out, standing there helplessly.

The doctor had been frank, not though very reassuring. The poison in her system was still in the process of being flushed out. Although crude, it had very serious consequences especially during surgery. A potent mixture of blood thinner and a hallucinogenic weed that reacted like a positive affecter with the Warfarin. The knife wound had been more damaging; it had been an arterial hit. Right after her third episode, she'd slipped into a coma. The doctors had said it was normal for a trauma induced body to shut down so that it could heal itself.

The doors opened and Callen walked in. He looked as bad as Sean himself. None of them had touched a razor in the last four days. He came to stand beside him, eyes on the still figure.

"Get some shut eye, Sean. Kate's gonna be pissed if she wakes up and sees you resembling something from a B grade horror flick."

Sean ran his hands down his face, fingers catching the stubble. He was exhausted but his head won't let him sleep. He had caught twenty minutes catnaps when his mind shut down, every time.

Callen pulled out a keychain. "Take a shower at my place. I'll stay here. Sean."

He looked at the other man, contemplating. Then he took the bunch of keys. Standing up, he leaned over the woman and lightly kissed her cheek. He hated how cold her skin felt.

"Car's out at front. Take it."

"Thanks, Gray." Callen nodded; a smile on his lips. It still amazed him how easily the name came from the two people he'd known for less than a week.

As he looked back at his sister, he prayed it wouldn't be the last time. He wasn't ready to lose yet another sister.

* * *

When Sean walked in through the hallways three hours later, he looked somewhat human. He'd shaved, showered and dressed in a new set of clothes. Just past the lobby, he caught sight of the gift shop. A small smile found its way on his lips at thought of a previous time when they'd both been in the hospital after her last house had blown up sky high. Bishop and Painter had deliberately bought some of the cheesiest get-well gifts for them. It had worked.

Changing directions he quickly made his way to the obscenely colorful little place looking like a flashy mall in the middle of pirate invested desert.

He scanned the items before finding what he was looking for.

He paid with credit and made his way back to the private room when Kate was. He slowed his pace when he found Callen outside talking a dark haired doctor, which he identified the lead surgeon. Increasing his pace he reached them in five long strides.

"Mr. Winchester," the doctor nearly jumped when Sean suddenly appeared at his shoulder. Callen however looked at Sean and Said, "She woke up a few minutes ago, just after you called. She's awake-" Sean was already pushing open the door.

Kate was sitting up, scowling at the door. Her expression changed when she the newest visitor, a tired smile lit up her face, despite the fact she looked and felt like crap.

When he placed his gift on the cabinet, she arched an eyebrow. It was already overflowing with flowers; left by various members of both the teams.

He pulled his chair right up to the bed and lowered the bedrail on the right side. He didn't hesitate as he gripped her hand in both of his.

"What's the verdict? Am I dying or something?" she asked, tapping his hand with her thumb.

"Not yet, no," he replied, and gently squeezed her hand. "Although you look like death warmed over."

"Gee, thanks, partner. They don't offer hairstyling in here." He chuckled; before the smile faded, a frown replacing it. It didn't go unnoticed by her.

"What is it? Everyone's okay? Gray didn't tell me-"

"Everybody's fine. I was just worried. About you," he added. Sighing he shook his head. "I'm not very good at this."

"Good at what? You look like you're trying to come up with a eulogy."

"You're not exactly making it easy," he complained, rolling his eyes. He looked slightly nervous.

"Alright, go ahead. I'll shut up," she said, making a motion of zipping up her mouth and throwing the key behind.

"Kate, I was thinking-"

The door opened and a blond head peeked in. Emma's eyes lit up when she saw Kate sitting up. She pulled her head back and a second later the entire Sigma team flooded in, carrying flowers. Sean quietly yet gently let go of her hand. When she looked at him, she found him deliberately avoiding her gaze.

Slightly hurt she tried smiling as the rest of them took turns in hugging her. They were joined by the NCIS agents, including Hetty, Nell and Eric. She couldn't help but smile when she saw Nell beside Callen, who had an arm draped across her shoulders, tucking her against his taller frame.

It was turning up to be pretty good get-well party when a nurse turned up tell them it was past visiting hours. Groaning and grumbling, they left one by one. Callen was one of the last ones to go. He kissed her cheek, hugging her.

"Asked her out yet?" she asked mischievously. Callen rolled his eyes. Then he nodded, looking sheepish. As she watched him leave, she smiled. At least someone got their happy ending.

**Almost done... Let me know what you think... Review!**


	17. Chapter 17

**This is it! **

**A/N: These amazing characters don't belong to me. In a way that's good, cuz Shane Brennan does a better job!**

Epilogue

Arlington, Virginia  
3 weeks later

Her heeled boots made sharp clicking noises as she walked down the hallway. She ran into Ellen Foster as she rounded the corner.

"Annie, when did you get back?" Ellen asked, enveloping the younger woman in a motherly hug.

"A week ago. Was busy with the latest case," Kate replied. "Dad's awake?"

"Grayson's in there. Goodness knows what they're talking about. He all but shooed me out of the room," Ellen laughed.

"Four decades worth of catching up to do," Kate said. "I hope Dad's not showing him my baby pictures. They're not flattering."

She bid goodbye to the forensic pathologist, and made her way to the last door in the wing. She knocked twice before opening it.

Her father was sitting on the couch almost buried under a pile of photographs. Grayson Callen sat on the floor, holding a few in his hands. They both looked up as the youngest member of the family walked in. She stopped taking in the scene, heart clenching.

"Annie Oakley," her father said. "You're late, young lady."

"Traffic's a nightmare at this time of the day. How are you?" she said, kissing him on the cheek and settling down beside her brother.

"Going on, kiddo. Seen that ruggedly handsome partner of yours lately?" he asked suddenly.

"Saw him couple of hours ago. Why?" She was suddenly suspicious.

"You kids' fighting?"

"Nobody's fighting, Dad. He's busy with another case. He left for Spain an hour ago. Sent his regards, by the way."

"He's good man," her father added, a twinkle in his blue eyes. They were an exact copy of his son.

"Oh god, Dad!"

"I'm just saying," he said, chuckling. Callen laughed at her mortified expression.

* * *

Kate stopped the second she got out of the elevator. Her intuition was hot wired directly to paranoia. The building had only six more tenants; all high level personnel from either Pentagon or Capitol Hill. Besides, the ridiculously expensive penthouse suite was mostly a place to live. The other apartment was to the left and was empty.

She pulled out her gun, softly turning the safety off. The front door was open slightly. She sure as hell didn't leave it like that before she'd left for work in the morning.

She pushed open the door with the toe of her boot, gun aimed high.

She heard claws pitter pattering on the wooden floor and Rex trotted into view, tail wagging. Confused, she slightly lowered the gun and crossed the hallway. Reaching the main room, she stopped, baffled.

All the lights were off. The whole place had been lit by candles of every possible shape and size. The small table on the timber deck outside had been set for two. In the middle of her kitchen, stood Sean Winchester, wearing a Kiss-The-Cook apron, holding a frying pan in one hand and a spatula in the other.

"_What are you doing?_" she asked, bewildered.

"Cooking. Why are _you_ aiming your gun at me?" he said, setting the pan down and wiping his hands.

"Aren't you supposed to be on your way to Barcelona?" she said, putting her gun away and peering at the food he'd been preparing.

"I stepped back. Guess I needed to finish some stuff. Danny took the case." He shrugged, looking at the oven.

Kate stood there trying to unscramble it. She hung her coat in the closet, chucked her boots in as well. Turning around she said, "So you're here. Cooking. What's the occasion? Did I miss my birthday or something?"

To her surprise, Sean went round the breakfast island and came to stand directly in front of her. He looked adorable and entirely kissable in that apron and Kate instinctively took a step back.

"No. I came to apologize." He placed his hands on her shoulders.

"Sean? What is it? You're starting to freak me out a bit."

"I'm sorry. For the way I've been acting the last few weeks. I've been a complete jerk. I'm sorry I pushed you away. In the hospital I thought we could-" She raised her hands and took his face in her hands. She took a deep breath trying to compose herself.

"Sean. I'm glad I can count on you to have my back. And I should've told you this a long time ago. I'm sorry too. I should've tried to save them. It was all my fault. It was my job to protect-"

He cut her off with a kiss. He pulled back after a few seconds.

"It's not. It has been five years. And I'd like to start over."

She smiled as she reached up for another kiss. She wrapped her arms around his neck and whispered, "I'd like that too."

The End

**I was toying around with the idea of a sequel... Hmm or maybe that was the over caffeinated plot bunny on my shoulder with too bright eyes!**  
**I'd love to hear your thoughts... let me know!**

**And as always, please review!**

**-Love, Sam.**


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